We Become Who We Are When We Fall In Love
by summerkid
Summary: Sent to live with her aunt in Texas, Santana comes face to face with a past she thought was long gone. She is shown the beauty in life through the eyes of her childhood best friend, Brittany, who ultimately shows her that life and love are one and the same... by making her feel it. AU
1. Chapter 1

_**Summary:**_ If you were given the chance to start over in the one place you never thought you'd end up… would you take it? If you got the chance to fall in love with the one person you didn't think you'd ever see again, but your heart never forgot… would you?

my tumblr is summerkid12 if you want to see more about this story, as I posted a few teasers and what not. enjoy :) review if you feel so inclined. kisses.

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><p><strong>Once Upon a Time<strong>

_**July, 2001**_

_It's still pretty warm outside, but for a summer night in Knox City, Texas it would be referred to as a cool night. The sun has long set, cars no longer passing the service road just beyond the bay window of Linda Lopez's home and inside is relatively silent. Relatively, because other than sound sleeping adults and a tiny dog on his pillow at the foot of Aunt Linda's bed fast asleep, two soft voices of little girls mingle around the living room, mixing in with the quiet._

_The two girls, one dark haired and the other blonde, lay on their backs underneath a coffee table with a thin blue sheet covering it up. Other than the lights from the night's sky, full moon and stars, two beams of light can be seen sneaking through the thin fabric of the sheet. They giggle when their flashlights clink together; Aunt Linda let them play with the metal ones she kept in the shed out back usually used for camping._

_Inside the cocoon built by seven year olds, the girl's share a pillow that fits perfectly between the legs of the abnormally large coffee table. A blanket, meant to cover them has become long forgotten, scrunched up down at their feet as they continue to move their hands in front of the lights to make shapes under the top of the table._

_The blonde girl brings the tip of her index finger to her lips, this gets the dark haired girl excited because she knows this is the tell tale sign of a story coming. Her friend always has a story to tell that she is either retelling or one that she has made up, she secretly hopes it's the latter because the girl beside her has the best imagination. She lowers her flashlight in preparation and the other girl's soon slips from her grip as well, falling to her stomach softly._

"_Once upon a time," The blonde starts with a small smile forming on her lips and a twinkle in her eye that can be seen regardless of the dim light. "In a land very far away."_

"_No," The dark haired girl interrupts, turning her head to the side and tapping her friend with the end of her flashlight. "It's 'in a land far, far away'." She corrects with a nod, much like her mother does when she uses the wrong words or phrases. The blonde girl scrunches her nose and her brow furrows._

"_Isn't that the same thing?" She asks in return with a shrug of her shoulders. The dark haired girl purses her lips together, tapping them lightly as she ponders her friend's question._

"_Very far away is like, from Aunt Linda's to Carmel's." The dark haired girl explains, using her hands to emphasize her point. "Far, far away is like, from Aunt Linda's to __**my**__ house." Her eyes go wide and the blonde wordlessly mouths 'oh' and nods in understanding._

"_That's far." She breathes out, her friend nodding._

"_Yeah."_

"_Okay, ahem," The blonde clears her throat dramatically, preparing to start over and the dark haired girl gets ready to hear the story now that those details are out of the way. "So, once upon a time, in a land far, far away there lived a beautiful princess with pretty, dark hair. And she was happy cause she smiled all the time. Especially when she visited her princess friend who lived in another far, far away land." The look on the other girl's face stops her and her own smile drops._

"_Britt, there can't be __**two**__ princesses and __**two**__ far, far away lands." The dark haired girl explains in exasperation._

"_Says who?" The blonde curiously inquires, her expression looking much like before when she was told it was 'far, far away'. The dark haired girl shrugs her shoulders once more, her eyes looking around the tiny confines of their little hut._

"_I don't know, Disney never has two princesses." She reasons. The blonde however shakes her head and waves her off._

"_Well, this is __**my**__ story and it has __**two**__ pretty princesses who live in __**two**__ far, far away lands and… and…" The blonde gets a bit flustered with having to defend her story, but the warm hand on her arm stills her and she glances over to find brown eyes and a smile._

"_Okay Britt, so, what happens next?"_

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><p><strong>Welcome to Hell<strong>

_**August, 2011**_

It's a normal night in the city. The sidewalks are mostly vacant except for the few stragglers heading home from the night shift, some random going to or coming from a bar or club and the sounds of taxis far off into the heart of the city fade into a beautiful background noise. Santana loves this about the city.

She can always depend on the sound of Mr. Brinkley next door letting his stupid, little, yappy dog out at the same time every single night to bark for an hour. The same two loud trucks cruise up and down her street two or three times until finally picking up whoever it is they are picking up and the sound of doors closing and music blasting quiets as they pull away. And most importantly she knows that when she hears infomercials start playing from her mother's room down the hall she knows the coast is clear.

She turns around in her chair, away from her mirror and cranes her neck towards her open window which is at the front of her house. Just below and a few houses down, she can hear the steady hum of her getaway car and she grins to herself. To be fair, Santana didn't care if her mother was awake or not because she goes out regardless. But sneaking out through her window is so much more fun.

Turning her attention back to the mirror she smacks her lips together holding the applicator to her lip gloss close by, but it's perfect and she shrugs at this fact not at all surprised. She twists the cap back on and tosses the makeup unceremoniously into a small clutch and then tip toes to her closet to pick up her favorite heels letting them dangle from her fingers.

These are the times she enjoys the fact that her father doesn't live here anymore and that her brother is a lazy piece of shit because she doesn't have to figure out how to remove the screen from her window seeing as it hasn't been put back into place since the summer going into the ninth grade. With that being a fleeting but recurring thought she steps out onto the roof just outside of her window. The shingles feel grainy under her bare feet and she curls her toes downwards to keep herself from falling off of the roof, again. Granted, she recalls, she was pretty blazed that time but still, she takes her time making her way across the roof until coming up to the flat part of the garage that nobody uses.

Stepping down onto its flat surface she walks over a few cigarette butts and empty packs, seems her mother is smoking again. At the far edge of the garage roof lays a small ladder she carefully hid out of sight and quickly sets it up for her departure. Clutch under her arm and shoes still in her hand she makes her way down the ladder and then pulls it down laying it down under a patch of bushes separating her house from her neighbors.

Without another thought she jogs towards the waiting car and hops into the front being welcomed by a cloud of smoke. Puck eyes her up and down, a smirk on his lips and she slaps his arm and rolls her eyes telling him 'to get a life' and that 'it's so not gonna happen'. He shakes his head, chuckling to himself with a blunt hanging from his lips as he pulls away from the curb and begins to take them to their destination.

Once they hit the parkway and her shoes are on her feet, strapped perfectly around her ankles and she's reapplied her lip gloss she reaches forward to pop the glove compartment and grabs the half filled bottle of Jack Daniel's. Truth is she's already buzzed from the Bacardi bottle she'd polished off after dinner but more liquor couldn't hurt. Puck comments that she better save some for him but she merely grunts as the alcohol coats her throat.

The ride is typically quiet. She and Puck don't talk much on the way to events. Talking was only prevalent after the fact, because then they had something to actually talk about. She hopes that the night isn't a bust and that she'd have to turn to Puck to get her mack on. There are only so many times she can explain to him that just because she fucks him doesn't mean she's into him.

She knows he isn't looking for a relationship and he understands her love of the single life, playing the field and what not. All Noah Puckerman is ever interested in is a steady lay and for a while Santana was that girl, until she wasn't which happened to be the day she had finally realized how much her and Puck actually had in common, an affinity and appreciation of the female body, preferably the naked form of the female body that is.

But of course, like any teenage boy, he thinks it's hot and that they should totally have threesomes. And of course being a confused teenage girl needing any kind of acceptance she agreed, at least she did once. That's all it took for her to realize that she was straight up and down, left and right gay. But when the time arises and she's left high and not so dry she will settle for any kind of friction between her legs.

"There better be some hot and willing bitches at this party." Santana sighs after a long sip from the bottle and glances down at the clock on the dashboard, estimating their time of arrival.

"All I know is that my cousin said there's gonna be chicks, drugs, alcohol and music." Puck wriggles his eyebrows suggestively. "If that's not a recipe for success then I don't know what is." He shrugs and leans his arm onto the center console separating him and his female companion. She rolls her eyes, takes another swig and twists the cap back on letting the bottle rest between her thighs.

"You seriously need to stop paying attention in English." She mutters causing him to grin and laugh through his nose noting on his smart sounding reasoning.

With girls and drugs on her mind she wondered where the night would take her again. She definitely wanted to get her mack on but the dilemma, which was almost every night, where to go to get it on. Once she had brought a girl back to Puck's car and when the girl was going down on her Puck jumped in the front with one of his loser friends. She never saw that girl again, not that she had planned on it.

Another time they happen to run into girls from their school and after one too many one of the girl's started getting handsy with Santana. Never one to give up an opportunity to get her grope on she brought her back to her house. The next morning was mortifying to say the least. After the girl left her house her mother asked her if she was a lesbian. At sixteen years old that question sounds more like an accusation and accusations normally come with consequences. So of course Santana adamantly denied such a thing.

Even still she hasn't come out to her mother although she is quite certain the woman knows by now, especially if the steady flow of different girl's leaving her bedroom is anything to go on. So nowadays Mrs. Lopez doesn't ask anything and Santana keeps to herself, which she would do whether she's asked or not.

She's not ashamed, anymore anyhow. But there's something about the way a parent looks at their child when they come out. In honesty Santana wouldn't know the look since she's still in the proverbial closet but she's seen movies and all of those shows that have the gay characters practically shunned and whatnot. So she just feels it's better to keep her personal life the way it is, personal. Plus, she has a few friends that she can talk to about her gay lifestyle.

Pucks car coming to a stop and the engine shutting off brings her out of her thoughts. She looks up and spots bright lights and a ton of people walking around, or at least trying to walk around and she smiles widely. Her hand goes up to the visor, pulling it down and flipping open the mirror to give herself one last look, running a finger over her perfectly shaped eyebrow.

"Here, finish this." She says to him, pushing the almost empty bottle of Jack into his waiting hands.

The party is in an open field just outside of the city, only a few miles more east and they'd be in the more dangerous part of town. It didn't matter much to them though, seeing as they lived right smack in the middle of the bad part of the city and then the even worse part of the city. They always laughed when people asked where they're from because The Heights was just as ghetto as the rest of the city but was looked at as the more posh of the neighborhood.

The field is set up with speakers, back of SUV's open sporting alcohol while other vans are set around the surroundings with little teens trying to sell drugs for their dealers. Music blared out into the open air, not even caring that they were actually in the middle of town with houses nearby. Nobody cared and that's what made these parties great.

As soon as the duo gets within fifteen feet of the party they are handed party favors from four girls' they usually see every other night. They grin at one another and step up to the girls ready to get what they came for. With a pill under her tongue Santana reaches for one of the girl's cups, turning around and continuing to walk towards the crowd of people washing it down with the potent drink leaving Puck with the four chicks.

It seemed like forever until the pill started to kick in, she blames that on the Bacardi from her house and Puck's probably watered down Jack. But regardless, she's dancing in the middle of the field with some girl whose name she doesn't know and doesn't really care to. The girl's hands are snaking up her legs under her skirt and it only makes Santana step further into her. Lips are on her neck for a moment before they pull away and she spots something small and white on the girls tongue.

Soon enough that tongue and the little white pill are dancing in her mouth, moving to the beat of the music. Lights are going in and out, blues, purple, red, yellow, green and other various colors of the rainbow and she tilts her head back as the pill dryly slides down her throat. In all honesty, Santana isn't much of a pill popper or an X freak or looking to score any kind of drug. But some nights the high from some sort of narcotic other than alcohol just lets her forget and black out some of the poor judgment she makes through the night. And the hangover from a few tablets are less harsh as well.

Her eyes search the field and she spots Puck for the first time since she went off by herself. He is coming her way and is holding two bottles of alcohol he presumably swiped from one of the trucks. She grabs the girl she'd been dancing with by the arm and drags her in her friend's direction, meeting him halfway and grabbing the bottle from his hands and drinking it as though it were Gatorade.

Puck leans in and says something in her ear, she can't hear what he says but the way he spoke made it sound just as exciting so she nods and pulls the girl along with her. She's not paying much attention considering she's got a full bottle and a hot brunette pinned up against a black SUV that she's only now realized is not wearing any underwear. In the blink of an eye she feels her skin sticking and gliding over some sort of leather seat and when she looks around she picks up on the fact that she's in the back seat with the brunette straddling her. The vehicle is moving but all she can focus on is the fact that the girl sitting on her is grinding down on her, so she doesn't exactly notice that the back seat she is in is not Puck's back seat.

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><p>"Now, just tell me what you know." The detective looked down at the note pad in front of the girl on the other side of the table before making eye contact with her. She knew the drill, she'd seen more than enough episodes of Law and Order to know what he was getting at. The pad in front of her was for the confession he assumed she was going to be making and the pen to the right of that legal pad was the ink that would determine her fate.<p>

"I told you dude, I don't know anything. I know as much as you do." She sighed out in frustration nudging the paper with her fingers, pushing it away from her to emphasize the fact that she wasn't going to be writing down any kind of admission to anything. She smirked at her comment though, seeing as the guy in front of her shifted in his uncomfortable metal chair. "Which is obviously a whole hell a lot of nothing." She leaned back into her equally uncomfortable chair but she wasn't going to show that it was digging into her bra strap and biting into her skin.

He tightens his lips, grunted a little bit and then nodded his head once, bringing his loose fists to rest under his chin. He glanced over his shoulder, making eye contact with his own reflection in the mirror behind him oh so obviously having some sort of invisible conversation with whoever was standing on the either side of that window. His partner, his boss, perhaps someone else that she didn't know but she knew what was going on.

Her buzz is still dancing in and around her veins, her heart is pounding but not due to the bright lights and the shield she had been glancing at every so often, it was moving to the music that was still beating heavily in her ears. She licks her lips, still being able to taste the liquor from the pre-game drinks on the ride there as well as the after taste in the back of her throat of whatever pill it was that that girl had slipped onto her tongue. She clears her throat, suddenly regaining his attention and he brings his hands, still clasped together, onto the table and twiddles his thumbs and she chuckles at the sight. It's not funny, only it is especially considering what she had gotten herself into through the evening and how she was undoubtedly going to get away with it without so much as a slap on the wrists.

It wouldn't be the first time and she figures it most definitely isn't going to be the last time she sees the inside of this room. In fact she has almost grown accustomed to these small rooms with pale walls and authority figures sitting in front of her demanding explanations for her actions. She assumes it will just be yet another tally on her record but, she is still a minor, a juvenile which she knows that once she is of age that shit gets tossed anyway, as though her past as a 'criminal' never existed, simply erased with the quick tap of a button. She is young and being within code, socially acceptable by following the rules is so boring, especially in this city. The only thing to do is to do shit that gets you in trouble. It is an adrenaline rush, maybe it's the reason she pulled this crap. It is the feeling of probably and most likely getting away with it with only the hint of getting caught that makes her do the things she does.

The guidance counselor at school said she is a typical kid crying for help. That she is clearly running with a bad crowd due to some under developed emotional capacity or some other bullshit she spewed during a parent teacher conference. She hasn't really heard much, thanks to the flask she keeps in her locker, oh yeah, she got caught with that too. But this is why excuses were invented. 'It wasn't mine' is the easiest one to use, seeing as Noah Puckerman had been caught drunk on campus more than a handful of times prior to her incident. That and the fact that her parents are divorced and they both try to be 'the better parent' they are always doing whatever they can to outdo the other and taking her side and her word for it is a given even if she is as guilty as sin.

"Well since you're not going to talk and you're obviously in no shape to have an actual discussion of tonight's events, which just to let you know, we've been informed that you were in fact involved. You are going to have to stay overnight and see a judge in the morning." That rips her right out of the drug, alcohol and gloating haze she has been swimming in. Her head snaps up and her eyebrows furrow.

"Stay? Wait, judge?" Her voice echoes off of the peeling white paint that was so faded she can see the blue paint underneath from the 1970's. "What the hell? I'm just a kid." She states, as though that is her get of jail free excuse.

His lips purse and he grabs her file and the legal pad, taps them onto the table to even them out and sort them together. He shrugs his shoulders and shakes his head.

"It's out of my hands now and tomorrow morning, a judge will look over your case file and decide what we're going to do with you." He explains in an even tone with just a hint of irritation that he can't crack the code of this teenage girl. Her head turns, but her eyes remain on the guy across from her and she slams her hands onto the table.

"That is some bullshit. I can't stay here over night. Criminals stay in fuckin places like this." She spits out, her face contorting into different expressions as the information processes in her brain. "I thought my juvenile records are sealed."

"Your records are sealed when you are of age. But right now, you're still a minor and these things," He motions to the rather large manila file. "Are still relevant." Her mouth flies open, sucking in air and holding in for a long period of time until it comes out with small strangled whines. "We've notified your parents." His eyes leave hers at the mention of her parents and he clears his throat as he pushes his metal chair back, making it screech across the tiles, and stands up. "They are going to be at the courthouse tomorrow."

The door opens and a woman appears, she tries to look sympathetic to the young girl but there's also a look of disappointment. Probably a look she's given over a thousand times, but each and every time it probably looks like the first time she did it. She can only imagine that's the look her mother got when she received the phone call from the precinct at 3:24am. She wouldn't know, her mother never gives her those looks, probably for the fear of her daughter cutting her out and favoring her father over her.

"Santana." The woman says and Santana looks between her and the officer who turns around and waves his hand for her to get up. She complies, pushing the chair along the tile just as he did moments before.

"This is Jane, she will be taking you to the holding cell that you will be staying in for the night." The officer nods to the woman beside him before turning and walking away with the file of indiscretions Santana had committed. The woman watches Santana go through everything happening to her letting her gain her bearings.

"Come on sweetie." Jane says softly, reaching her hand out to place it on the small girl's shoulder but is quick to pull it back when Santana jerks away. "You will be in a cell by yourself so don't worry about the other girls." Before she leads the young girl out she points to the spot she had been sitting at at the table. "Don't forget your shoes Santana."

Santana looks over her shoulders to find she had pretty much forgot about her three-inch, four hundred and fifty dollar stilettos her father had gotten her for her birthday two months ago. In a way she wants to leave them there because she is pretty pissed off that she has to stay in some shit whole cell for the night, or rest of the night's hours anyway, to show her dad a thing or two for not coming to get her. But truth be told, those shoes were beautiful and she doesn't have it in her to leave them behind to make a statement to her clearly horrible parents.

She stands there, at a small table that looked like it belonged in someone's basement that has long since been forgotten and is used for the sole purpose of folding laundry on. Her hands, clasped behind her back, are sweating and she can't figure out if it's from her hangover or the way the judge is rolling her eyes as she reads over Santana's file. The gowned woman sighs as she flips page to page to page, every now and again glancing up to the young girl standing before as though in shock that these pages have anything to do with her. Santana's skirt is still perfectly smoothed out as it had been the night before, not one crease in it since she refused to place any part of her body onto that cot that was set up against the wall in her cell. Her hair, though messy, had that I just had some great sex look, so needless to say she pretty much looked like a street walker. The dark make up smudged around her eyes didn't deviate from that image she was sure she was exuding in the court room.

As badly as she wants to, she can't find it in her to turn around. Her parents are behind her, she knows it. Her mother sitting to her left, the only woman sniffling in the entire room, most likely clutching a Kleenex she pulled from her chest. Her father to her left, probably rolling his eyes as he tries to ignore his newest twenty year old conquest, Patti. They got married three years ago, had a kid and ever since Patti has detested Santana's very existence. Oh, yeah that was another excuse her mother liked to use for her daughter's bad decision making. Santana just let her think that. Truth was, she could give two fucks about Patti and her feelings. Patti was a bitch and it was clear as day, her father was just too exhausted and felt like he was too old to continue his search for love. So he put up with that brat's shit, even if it did mean he had to listen to her bad mouth his eldest daughter.

"Santana, you refuse to discuss the events of last night but to be honest I think that at this point even adding last night to your file would be moot." The judge intertwines her own fingers, resting her hand onto the folder in front of her and eyeing down the girl. "To be frank I don't see why further action has not been taken before." Santana can hear her lawyers mouth open but Judge Judy is totally all over that before any words come out. "I understand you have... connections." She says with disdain, glancing over Santana's shoulder, to her right and Santana knows her father is most likely avoiding eye contact with the woman in charge. "But this type of behavior is unacceptable no matter whose daughter you are." Santana tears her eyes from the judge and sucks in her lips.

"With that in mind, I believe it would do you some good and society some good if you had some restrictions, rules that apparently you either don't follow or do not have set for you." She hands the files over to her clerk and starts rustling through some papers. "I had originally decided that an ankle bracelet be in place." Santana's eyes shoot up, her eyebrows scrunching together and her lips parting. "However, I had a long discussion with someone siding on your behalf and felt that it would not be in your best interest to be stuck at home all day every day for the next six months." Santana let's out a sigh of relief, her shoulders falling comfortably. "Instead, you will be staying in Texas with your aunt." Just as before her head snaps back up at the judge, confusion all over her face. "While there, you will have someone there keeping tabs on you and your aunt will be writing reports about your efforts and success there."

Santana cannot believe her ears. This was not happening.

She sat in the passenger side seat of her mother's car while her parent's stood a few feet away. She couldn't hear what they were saying but taking in the frantic hand gestures they were most likely fighting. Her mother was visibly upset and her father had that face on that he wore when he thought he was right. Patti stood a few feet away from them not even caring about anything going on around her, every few seconds looking down at her very expensive wrist watch and tapping her foot impatiently.

Santana rolls her eyes at the sight of her stepmother. She really was just a wretch of a woman, Santana could not stand to look at her and the only thing that seemed exciting about this sudden and abrupt move to Texas was the distance put between her and that chick. But other than that, the idea of leaving her home, her city, and her friends well that royally pissed her off. She figured she could have totally rocked that ankle bracelet and was quite confident that would have only lasted a week or two anyway.

The ride home was excruciatingly quiet, minus the random sighs of disappointment slipping over her lips. But she does her best to keep her focus on the scenery passing her by too afraid to look over at her mother and see the look that Jane had given her the night before.

"I'm not going." Santana announces once inside the confines of their home, her mother shutting the front door behind them. "That broad is insane if she thinks she's gonna send me to some hick town, like that's gonna rehabilitate me?" She slams her hands on her hips and stomps her foot on the ground as she watches her mother wander through the kitchen. "Do you really think that me going to stay with Aunt Linda is gonna change anything?" She shouts trying to get some attention from the woman in front of her. After silent seconds a cabinet swing shut, hard wood against hard wood and Santana's eyebrows dart up and her body tenses. Her mother takes in a deep breath and spins around eyeing her daughter.

"What would you prefer Santana?" The older woman challenges and Santana suddenly forgets words in the English language. "Staying here clearly isn't working. You just keep getting worse and worse and I…" Her mother shakes her head and shuts her eyes tight. "I just don't know what to do with you anymore. You don't talk to me, you're gone all hours of the night and all you do is hang around those kids who are no good." She points at her daughter and moves to the refrigerator. "It's like I don't even know you." She sighs out.

"Like you ever did." Santana says under her breath. "So I get in trouble because they are bad influences?" She thinks that maybe she can play the woe is me card, that maybe if she plays victim that her mother will soften up and smarten up. See the light that sending her precious baby far, far away will only cause more pain and help no one in the end.

"Santana," She says softly, her hand playing with the handle of the refrigerator door. "You are old enough to make your own decisions and old enough now to know right from wrong." She clenches her jaw and avoids eye contact knowing that if she does she will fall to her daughter's spell and get reeled in like she always does. "Your father…"

"My father?" Santana yells walking further in to the kitchen, putting her hands on the counter. "_Now_ he's my father? I see how it is, when decisions are made and I'm pissed it's his fault. Just admit it you don't want me around just like he doesn't and now you guys finally have the opportunity to make that happen." Her throat is scratchy now from the shouting but she doesn't care and she takes in a deep breath ready to fire out some more harsh words.

"No, we both made the decision." Mrs. Lopez turns around, hands on her hips matching her daughter's previous stance. "You need to get away, get away from those kids who are only bringing you down. You're not making good choices and one of these days you're not going to be a kid anymore. You need to grow up and be the Santana I used to know." She steps towards the counter, just another thing separating her from her daughter. "You should start packing." Her eyes lower.

"Whe… when am I leaving?" Santana's voice cracks and her resolve is beginning to crumble. This is all too real now.

"In five hours." She says calmly, forcing her words through the lump in her throat but that fact does not flash on Santana's radar. "Your father and I are going to drive you there." Santana opens her mouth to object but her mother puts her hand in the air to stop her daughter. "The judge thought it would be best if we did this quickly." She can feel her daughter's emotions. The anger, the fear and the sadness but it's the only way.

"And driving is quick? I'd rather walk myself there than sit in a car ride with you two." She rolls her eyes in clear irritation. "This is so fucked up. I can't…" She first tries to use her anger but being upset wins over and before she knows it she has tears trailing down her cheeks. "You all fuckin suck anyway. Whatever." She kicks the bottom cabinet and marches out of the room and stomps up the stairs, the slamming of her bedroom door reverberating throughout the whole house.

* * *

><p>Santana, her mother and her father drove silently through most of the city, then most of the rest of the state and then through a few more states until her mother decided to make small comments here and there. Her father for the most part remained silent every now and again grunting as an answer to whatever question or random thing her mother said.<p>

"It will be nice to see all your old friends." Mrs. Lopez says, turning her head halfway to glance at her daughter her merely scowls at the older woman.

"_I_ don't _have_ friends in the sticks." She bites back catching her father glare at her through the rearview mirror.

"Well that's not true Santana, you used to play with those two girls all the time in the summer." Her mother points out as she starts rifling through her bag. "You and those two blonde girls, running around in the grass, playing in the dirt," She smiles to herself at the memory, it's sad but it's still a smile.

"I haven't seen them since I was twelve." Santana mutters, clearly annoyed that her mother is dragging her into a conversation. "I'm sure they don't remember me. I barely remember them." She adds as an afterthought.

"Oh don't be silly of course they do." Mrs. Lopez assures her, regardless that her statement is purely possibility rather than fact. She shifts in her seat and tosses a small photograph book on her daughter's lap. "You look at those pictures and tell me they weren't your friends." She smiles softly at her daughter before turning her attention forward. "Brittany and Quinn." She announces loudly, suddenly remembering both of the girls' names while Santana slowly opens the photo book analyzing the pictures of her youth. "You and Brittany, the girl from up the road," She nudges her ex-husband to agree with her that Brittany was indeed the girl from up the road although Santana always referred to her as the girl from 'down' the road. He nods, even though he probably isn't listening. "You two were inseparable, I swear, we couldn't get you two to leave one another's side." Mrs. Lopez recalls. "And you were always being mean to that little boy. Well, he was kind of a giant for a ten year old but still. Why were you so mean to him?" Santana shrugs not giving her mother an answer and continues to look over the pictures of her and the two little girls she always thought she would know forever. She knows why she used to be mean to that stupid kid, Finn fucking Hudson, she'll never forget the way he used to make fun of Brittany.

Santana has never been to the desert but if she were dropped _here_ blindfolded she would assume that is where she was. Everything from what she can see is all dirt and nothingness, miles and miles of dirt roads to the left, to the right, behind her and in front of her. With the visions of all of that dust clouding around the car as they sped Santana hunched further into her seat, raised the volume on her iPod and closed her eyes for this clearly could not be reality and she was desperate to believe that 'Inception' was not just a movie a concept.

If the sign they'd driven by back at a set of toll booths didn't inform her of their arrival in Texas, the sand dunes and dead plant life sure did. All she can think as her music plays deafening loud into her ear, is that this trip to Aunt Linda's used to be the thing she waited for all year. She and her brother would sit in the back of whatever car or minivan they had at the time, play the license plate game, 'I spy' and every other car game ever invented or thought up by them.

Santana tries not to remember a few hours ago when they'd driven through Tennessee and passed the diner off of the small town's 'city'. She desperately did her best to fall asleep through Tennessee purposely to avoid setting eyes on the place, but of course nothing seems to be going her way at all these days. It looked the same, she muses, shaking her head to the beat of the next song that comes on her iPod trying not to look like she is remembering the 'good times'.

She did the pity thing for a while. Getting her parents to do whatever she wanted with a small pout, a tear here and there and even a temper tantrum. But, just like their marriage, they eventually stopped trying with her too. It got to the point where she'd gotten in trouble so many times that making 'daddy' feel bad for leaving 'mommy' just wasn't an excuse they accepted any longer.

_Fuck that diner_, she thinks to herself.

When she was nine, her brother puked in the parking lot of that diner and then when he was feeling better, they went in for pancakes. Which, now that she thinks about it, is kind of fucking disgusting. When she was five, even though she really doesn't remember, apparently she told a man that he needed to stop staring at her mother's legs because it was rude. According to Gloria, the waitress who worked there for forever, told them that man never returned. When she was ten, her parents let her get the big banana split for breakfast because she was sick on her birthday a few weeks prior and never got to enjoy birthday cake.

When she was twelve, they stopped at that diner on the way home from Aunt Linda's. When she was twelve, her parents told her and her brother that they were going to be living in different places for a little while. They explained that mommy and daddy still loved them, but that they had to fix some things between them. She may have been twelve, but even as she stared at them, her fork sitting still in her eggs and bacon, she knew it was over.

_Fucking diner_.

Mr. Lopez pulls onto yet another dirt road and the new bumps and jolts of the vehicle startle Santana and her eyes pry open in curiosity. This road, unlike the others seemed to lead up to a small house a few feet away. Of course she recognizes it straight away. It's a little bit more worn down or worn in, whatever, than she remembers it but it's still relatively just the same as the last time she saw it. She scrunches her eyebrows and eyes up the not so new place that would be her pseudo home for a few months.

The last time she was at this house was the last time her family was at this house, together. Happy and smiling faces and so many things that were seemingly ancient memories of a time that once was. She barely remembers what those happy faces looked like because she rarely if ever saw them. Her mother never laughed like she used to when they'd have barbeques at Aunt Linda's and her father didn't grin with that glimmer in his eye as he looked at his wife through the fire pit at the towns yearly summer carnival. Her brother was off at college, quick to get as far away from the rest of the Lopez's when he was given the chance and he only visits on holidays… Christmas and that's it.

If anything this place merely brought back the feelings of a broken child's heart and she was not about to dwell on those emotions for more than a nanosecond, she has better things to do than be the typical over emotional teenage girl. So instead of getting misty eyed at her childhood memories flashing through her mind some more, she sits up in her seat, rolls her eyes and huffs at the idea that she would be living country for the entirety of her senior year.

The driveway isn't as long as she remembers it being, in fact it's actually pretty short and more wide than anything. Aunt Linda, she realizes now, has no front yard and her eyes dart around just looking for a spare tire to be propped up on something like the house that would only scream out 'white trash'. Of course she doesn't find it but what she does spot is her Aunt standing on the bottom step of her front porch with one arm across her stomach and the other in the air waving at them.

Santana presses her lips together, takes in a deep breath and lets it come through her nose, shaking her head ever so slightly. She loves her Aunt Linda and all but this is beyond bogus, house arrest is much more suitable for someone of her stature. She deserves that atrocious accessory, she earned that accessory but instead she's stuck in the middle of Farmville USA. Santana is convinced that this is what would be considered cruel and unusual punishment.

When the car comes to a stop she pulls out her ear buds and turns her iPod off not wanting to have to deal with her mother or father telling her to do so. Even without the music blaring in her ears there is no way she is going to listen to anything they have to say anyway. The three Lopez's get out of the car to greet the fourth who is making her way down to meet them. Mr. Lopez hugs his sister quickly and without much emotion and Santana doesn't do much to stifle a laugh at his lack of capacity to feel much of anything anymore. Her mother and her aunt share pleasantries from what she can gather but she doesn't make a lot of eye contact with the adults her are ruining her life.

"Welcome Santana." Aunt Linda says sweetly which breaks through to the youngest Lopez, who looks up at her aunt but does not offer a smile.

"Where am I staying?" She asks as she slings her bag over her shoulder and reaches down to take the suitcase from her father's feet. Aunt Linda is a little taken aback by her straight forwardness but nods nonetheless and pointing over her shoulder with her thumb she tells her niece that she's staying in the 'usual room'. Adjusting the bag in her hand Santana nods and makes her way up the steps.

"Aren't you going to say…" Her mother starts to say but is cut off by the sound of the screen door shutting behind her daughter and she shakes her head. Aunt Linda sighs, glancing over her shoulder for a moment before looking back at her sister-in-law.

"She'll be fine, don't worry." She tries to offer but the hopeless look on Mrs. Lopez's face tells her that her platitudes do nothing to calm her or rid her of the sorrow in her heart. Mr. Lopez clears his throat getting the attention of the two women in his presence.

"We better get going if we want to get home by late tomorrow night, as long as we drive in shifts." He announces and turns to head back towards the car. "Thank you again Linda, I really owe you one." He says to his sister before retreating into the driver's seat and waits for his ex-wife to follow.

"Watch over her." Mrs. Lopez pleads softly and Linda's heart cracks a little at the sight of the woman she had once considered practically her sister by blood, she still did. "She's more fragile than she lets on." The older woman admits, her head hanging a little and she sighs turning back towards the car.

Linda awkwardly watches them leave and she can't help but wonder what she had gotten herself into. She knew the divorce was bad, the kids didn't take it well and that her Karen, her sister-in-law, was still rather broken from everything that has happened since. Twisting her lips in thought and memories she turns around and makes her way back into her house to find her new edition.

"This is fuckin' ridiculous." Santana huffs tossing her bag onto the bed that's been told is hers.

But it's not her bed, her bed is back in Massachusetts at her mother's house where all her other shit is. She places her hands on her hips and allows her eyes to travel the expanse of the room. Her head shakes and she can't fight the tiny chuckle of annoyance that escapes her lips. Her thoughts being on the idea that Harry Potter had a bigger room in that goddamn cupboard.

It was different when she was a kid, this place was her kingdom. When she got dirty and played in mud with her brother and the other kids in the area. The other kids, she remembers, were alright but the possibility of them even remembering her was doubtful. They saw each other every single day and Santana and her family had stopped coming to Aunt Linda's since her parent's divorce which was when she was twelve years old. Besides, the actual town part of this place was well over three miles away so it wasn't like she was going to 'run into' anyone anytime soon.

"Santana I gotta take a ride into town, grab some things for supper." Linda says poking her head through the not closed door. Santana stares at her, as if waiting for some more words to come out but nothing does. So she shakes her head and flickers her eyes around the room and shrugs her shoulders.

"Okay."

"Well come on I haven't got all day." Linda motions for her to follow her and disappears into the hallway.

"I don't wanna go." Santana tells her walking out into the hall and to the front door, arms crossed over her chest.

"You don't really have a say in that darlin'. I know we're blood and all and you're my goddaughter but, damn I ain't leaving you here all by yourself. Not on your first day here anyway." Linda laughs at the idea that this teenager really thought she'd be left alone, especially after being shipped here for being a badass. "We'll work up to that. Now let's go." Santana rolls her eyes and figures she is not going to win a fight with Aunt Linda, she's always been kind of tough.

Aunt Linda heads out to the car, Santana can tell that much by the sound of the squeaky screen door closing behind distancing footsteps. She lets out an exasperated sigh and looks straight ahead through the window in front of her. An eyebrow quirks and she tilts her head in wonder. Another thing she had thought was so much bigger was the distance between her aunt's house and the girl's house from up or down the road. It was actually about twenty to twenty five feet away, not really up or down the road at all. Stupid kid memories, she thinks to herself. Always thinking things are bigger, wider and more extravagant.

As it seems she can actually see most of the house next door and one of the windows proved that someone was in it, the light was on. Walking the few steps it takes to get to the window she leans forward and squints her eyes to try and get a better look. From the twenty or twenty five feet or more she can make out a figure moving around. The sound of the horn from her aunt's truck startles her away from the window but, for a moment she can swear she catches a glimpse of blonde.


	2. Chapter 2

**In a Land Far, Far Away**

_**June, 2004**_

"_I love the smell of summer rain." Santana says out loud, her eyes carefully trained on her hand that is watching the rain hit her skin and trickle from her fingers. She grins to herself, it never ceases to her amaze her the way that rain feels. It's different than a shower, something she's tried in vain to explain to her mother, but she's realized it's a lost cause._

"_Does it smell different from winter rain?" Brittany asks, testing the water falling from the sky on her own hand in the same fashion as her friend. She mimics the way Santana turns her hand upwards, so her palm is facing the sky like she is catching the rain drops. Then she turns it upside down, letting the droplets hit the top of her hand and wriggles her fingers as well._

"_Yeah." The dark haired girl tells her best friend. She shrugs her shoulders, shakes her hand off and pulls it back through the window, not really caring about the water dripping from her hand and onto the carpet of her Aunt's guest room floor. "It's like… awesome." She explains vaguely, but Brittany smiles and nods regardless, taking Santana's word for it. "Here, take a whiff." She leans her hands onto the window sill, waits for Brittany to do the same, and then she moves slightly forward so their faces are just getting hit with rain. "Mmm." She hums out, her eyes flutter closed and she smiles softly while rain cascades over her tanned cheeks. "Do you smell it?" Brittany giggles, but does as requested and smells the air outside, closing her eyes as well assuming this is how she will get the full affect._

"_It __**does**__ smell different." Brittany muses, unaware of the other girl's stare. Santana's grin widens at the way the blonde is letting herself completely take it in, the smell and the rain all in one. "You know what I think?" She says after a few moments of silence, opens her eyes and turns her head to face Santana who shakes her head not wanting to get caught staring._

"_What's that?" She questions in return, pulling back from the sill and reaches her hand out once again to touch the rain._

"_I think this is what beautiful smells like." Brittany declares proudly, as though she has figured out the world's biggest secret. Santana doesn't laugh, she does giggles slightly, but it's muffled by the beaming smile she sends the girl beside her._

"_I think you might be right." Santana agrees with a nod, but before she can continue in her position of Brittany's intelligence, footsteps and a creak in the floor catches both of their attention._

"_What are you girl's doing?" Mrs. Lopez asks from the doorway, her eyes wide and staring at the floor that is now soaking wet. "Santana Lopez, you better…" Her threats are short lived because her daughter hops out the window and all she can see are two skinny arms sticking up to grab at Brittany._

"_Come on Britt!" Santana yells in laughter, making her friend squeal as she pulls at her hand and nearly making her fall out the window._

"_Santana!" Mrs. Lopez calls out, trying to hide the grin on her face as she steps towards the open window that has become her daughter's escape route._

_She chuckles to herself when she sticks her head out, only to find her daughter and the girl from up the road running through her sister-in-laws backyard hand in hand. They skip and slip across the wet grass, jumping in puddles that are more mud than water. She shakes her head when they finally stop, open their arms, hands still connected, and smile into the rain falling onto their faces._

* * *

><p><strong>Don't You Remember?<strong>

_**August, 2011**_

Sitting around Aunt Linda's gets boring super quick for Santana and the girl is just itching to get out. It's only the early evening but, by this time back home she is already gallivanting about The Heights with Puck or whoever she can get to drive her around. She closes the door to her new bedroom and stands there with her hands on her hips scanning her eyes over the things she brought, the things that are already there and the things she doesn't have.

She hears the creaking of floor boards from down the hall and she rolls her eyes because she's pretty sure that Aunt Linda doesn't get down with the bottle like her mom so if she's going to make a break for it she's going to have to be extra stealth. Her eyes are brought to the window she had been looking out of earlier and wonders if the people around these parts have screens in place, not that she'd have a problem kicking one out if push came to shove.

Santana stalks over to her bag, unzips it with a purpose and rifles through her things, digging deep into the bottom but coming up empty handed. She huffs and curses some choice Spanish expletives at the realization that one of her parents must have gone through her stuff because she is missing a certain something. The cool feeling of glass is nowhere to be found and she can only imagine her mother sitting pretty back in Boston topping off her third vodka rocks in front of the television getting ready for some crappy reality show to come on.

She should have figured that her perfectly, or so she thought, hidden bottle would have gotten taken when she realized that her phone was missing the first day she got here. That was a tantrum in itself and Aunt Linda still hasn't heard the end of that one and probably won't until she gets over, which is most likely never. Her aunt even tried to make a lame attempt at telling her about how the Gas n' Go sells pay as you go phones, only to receive a gagging noise and the patented Lopez eye roll at such a suggestion. True, Santana has no intentions of lowering herself to pay minute by minute for her cellularly high class lifestyle, but she also doesn't know _anyone's_ numbers seeing as they are all stored in her phone back in Boston.

It becomes apparent that drowning out the complete silence that surrounds her out in the middle of nowhere is not going to happen with the trusty help of the bottle of Smirnoff she thought she had hidden beneath her delicates perfectly. Instead, she pulls out an outfit, because it's clear that she needs to go grocery shopping with a very short and specific list.

Her mini skirt is zipped, boots pulled up to stop just below her knees and over her form fitting tank top she finishes the ensemble off with a tasteful fur trimmed vest that she buttons up halfway. She glances in the mirror, but her hair is perfection so she leans forward to apply a quick touch up of makeup before she decides to make moves.

Turns out, Aunt Linda seems to not be much of a fan of screens like the rest of her family and she gets herself out through the window without a hitch. Sure, the heels of her boots decide to dig into the grass but whatever, a slight inconvenience but the mission is still on. When she gets towards the front of the house she looks over her shoulder to see that the light in the living room is still very much on which means Aunt Linda is most likely watching the second showing of Jeopardy or Wheel of Fortune so she is in the clear.

She lightly jogs out to the road and knows immediately to turn left because right will only bring her further out to the sticks and she is not about to run into a band of rednecks who throw her in the bed of their dirty pick-up truck. Though, she has to admit the thought does sound appealing but only for a second because flashes of Lifetime movies run through her mind and she shakes her head at even contemplating going there.

With her hands shoved in the pockets of her fur lined vest, she walks briskly up the road passing the house next door within seconds which she inwardly laughs at because when she was younger next door seemed so far away. Eventually she gets tired and it's even worse when she sees that she barely got down the whole road, but she is not about to give up. She figures that if she needs to, she can use her sex appeal and the working function that is her thumb to hitch a ride into town. Movies like 'Sweet Home Alabama' and 'Have You Heard About the Morgan's' have to have some sort of truth to them and she is banking on running into a nice townie who will bring her to and from her destinations.

The bag on her shoulder begins weighing down heavily on her and she curses herself for not even trying to take Aunt Linda's truck. But the woman would have definitely noticed her prized auto mobile missing from her dirt paved driveway which would have obviously pointed her in the direction of Santana's very empty room. When she finally looks up from the road she's been walking on for what feels like forever, she sees the lights of town where she had been a few days before with her aunt.

At least it's in sight and the fact that her mission is not without reason, she picks up the pace of her walking. It takes about thirty minutes, maybe more but who's counting, until she finally reaches the tiny town where everyone and their mother go to buy everything. It's still kind of busy but Santana is hoping that she is not discovered. Not that she would be. It's been years since she's seen any of this place and its occupants so it would be pretty difficult for anyone to actually put a name to her face.

Down on the corner of Main Street she spots a small, hole in the wall bar and across from it a liquor store. Back home she'd have no problem strolling into any kind of bar, sleazy or fancy, sit down and get a few drinks from the friendly bartender. But once again, she's not about to make herself known, so her best bet and what she feels is a much better plan is to go to the liquor store and score a bottle, maybe two, of vodka.

Unlike back in The Heights, she leisurely struts across the street without so much as a horn blaring and a voice hollering at her to move her sweet ass. The neon pink 'open' sign is about as welcoming as the pearly gates in heaven and she smirks to herself as she pushes the door open and greeted with the faint jingling of bells. The man behind the counter nods and smiles kindly in her direction so she flashes him her best 'I'm totally old enough to be in here' smile, teeth and all.

Her attention is brought to the shelf in the back holding all of her favorite guys; Jack, John, Jose and Jim. She was close with all of them once upon a time and then there was that night she blacked out and woke up in the middle of her high school's football field in nothing but her panties and bikini top. At least she still had her shoes on she muses as she runs her fingers along the glass of the bottles. After little debating she grabs herself a handle of Jose before turning to find herself some vodka and grabs a fifth.

There's no one else in the store and all she can hear besides the guy behind the counter breathing is the clinking noise of the bottles in her arms. She smiles brightly, yes brightly because she's found some friends in the shape of pretty bottles. As she places her purchases up onto the counter the guy eyes her curiously while his hand slowly reaches out to grip the two bottles to ring them in. She tears her eyes from his stare and begins to look through her bag in search of her money. The man clears his throat, bringing her attention back up to him.

"I.D. miss?" He asks politely and she giggles out something equivalent to flirty, flattered and forgetful all in one.

"Oh, my bad." She apologizes for the sake of sounding sincere and she hands over her fake I.D. that has yet to let her down. He grabs it gently from her fingers and looks at it for a few seconds before smiling once again and giving it back to her.

"That'll be $22.50." He says and she quickly hands him the cash.

She tries not to look so surprised not wanting him to catch on that he totally just sold alcohol to a minor but truth be told she just can't get over how inexpensive liquor is out here. Maybe this place is something she can get used to. She chuckles at that thought garnering a strange look from the man as he counts out her change.

"You have a goodnight miss." The man tells her and she nods, not bothering to say it back because she is already out the door with her goodies.

That was cake, she thinks to herself as she walks across the street heading back the way she came. Even better, the nice, kind man behind the counter didn't even notice her swipe three little airplane size bottles of Jack Daniel's while he was ringing the rest of her goodies up. She figures that on the way back 'home' she will prepare herself for the 'flight' and pulls out the first tiny bottle of Jack.

It burns her tongue and then the back of her throat, doing her best not to let it show on her face that she truly has no more love for Mr. Daniel's. The first bottle is done within three minutes, seeing as it only takes about four normal person sized sips for her to finish the whiskey. She easily tosses it to the ground without a care in the world, digging in her purse for the second not giving another thought to the clinking of glass against concrete behind her.

She's about a mile away from town when she starts getting antsy for the good stuff, the liquid that reminds her of home. Santana chuckles, loudly, at her thought process. The fact that vodka reminds her of home is actually quite sad in that twisted, 'I'm from a broken home' kind of way. Vodka, she says in her head, makes her think of her mother.

With a roll of her eyes, she shoves her hand into her bag to grab that bottle that is calling her name. However, she is stilled and taken out of her own mind when she notices the flashing lights that are creeping up from behind her. She moves closer to the side of the road and glances over her shoulder to see a patrol car slowly roll by her only to pullover a few feet ahead of where she's stopped.

"Fuck." She mutters, quickly removing her hand from her bag and zips it up to hide the fact that she has alcohol in her underage bag.

The door opens, at a glacial pace, and so does the officer who is heading towards her. He is wearing that typical from the south sheriff type hats and she notices he most definitely has one of those 'swagger' things that cowboys have in movies. He lifts his hand to the tip of his hat and makes a motion to dip it out of courtesy for the young woman, only getting a quirked eyebrow and a crinkled nose in response from the girl.

"No buses run this way miss." The cop informs her, finally stopping about two feet from Santana. "Housing starts about another mile up." He points over his shoulder in the very direction that she is heading and she nods, she totally already knows this. She has the blisters on the back of her heels to prove it.

"Yeah, that's exactly where I'm heading." Santana tells him as she adjusts the bag on her shoulder which she only now feels the weight of.

"You must be from out of town." The man laughs, in a friendly and kind manner as he rests his hands to his hips. "I dunno anyone that would take that trek to town on foot." He says and all Santana can think is that she really hopes this conversation ends soon because she is starting to get her buzz on and talking to law enforcement is seriously ruining it.

"Yeah, from out of town." She humors the guy, figuring that if he is cruising down the south service road as his 'station' he must not have a lot of human contact.

"Well, welcome to Knox City." He takes a half a step closer and extends his hand to her. "I'm Sheriff Hummel." He introduces himself and with a raise eyebrow, Santana simply inspects the hand being offered. She just grips the handle on her bag a little tighter, she doesn't know where this cops hands been. For all she knows that in this Podunk town the Sheriff is also the mortician or worse, a janitor. He picks up on the fact that she is not going to be reciprocating the gesture and slowly pulls his hand back.

"Can I go now?" Santana blurts out, tilts her head and cocks a hip to the side out of annoyance. Sheriff Hummel is taken aback, his head jerks to the side and he eyes the girl up for a few moments.

"Umm, actually." She catches his eyes flicker to her bag and she adjusts it to be a bit behind her body instead of at her side. "You know, here in Knox, we got a new law about littering." He begins, and motions a few yards back where the setting sun is shining its light on one of those tiny bottles Santana chucked.

"New?" She mumbles to herself, it would figure that this place would be behind the times on the environment and shit. "I'm sorry I wasn't aware that glass wasn't biodegradable." She pouts, trying to act innocent, batting her eyes for the full effect and judging by the kind smile Sheriff Hummel gives her, he buys it.

"It's no big deal, we're all still getting used to it here." He waves his hand to emphasize the town, but, Santana doesn't think he needs to make _that_ big of a production with his arm. "But, we're lucky, seeing as we're not big litter bugs here in Knox." He beams at this fact and it takes everything in her not to vomit all over his never been polished black shoes.

"So," Santana starts again, shifting her feet, suddenly regretting her choice in footwear. "Am I going to be arrested or something?" She asks with uncertainty. Santana has no idea what kind of Andy Griffith law system they have here in the middle of nowhere. For all she knows, she might have to paint a neighbor's fence for her crime, or worse, help some old person for a week.

"Oh," Sheriff Hummel chuckles, shakes his head and finally removes his hat, revealing to the young girl that he is in fact bald, or at least getting there fast. "No. Think of this as your first warning." He winks, and Santana is grateful that it's not one of those creepy older guy, 'I'm totally gonna try and get you into my van' kind of winks.

"Well, then let me be on my way." She moves to walk by him and make her way to her aunt's but she's stopped at the sound of his shoes crunching against gravel and dirt.

"It's a pretty far ways Miss." He reminds her, and she stops, grinds her teeth and finally spins around with a sweet smile. "I can drive ya if you'd like." He offers, motioning towards his patrol car that she finally reads that it does say 'Sheriff' on the side.

She contemplates the offer wisely. If she pulls up in a patrol car only three days after her arrival, there's no doubt in her mind Aunt Linda will either throw something at her or throw her out. One or the other, but something's getting thrown. But, then again, the Sheriff is being a good Samaritan and truth be told, her feet fucking hurt. So, in the end, the pain in her feet wins over the possibility that Aunt Linda may or may not strike her with some sort of object in the house, like a piece of furniture.

At least Sheriff Hummel allows her to sit in the passenger side, which she reasons is a good enough piece of evidence that she is not in trouble with the law. Luckily for her, the man beside her also isn't one for much small talk and the rest of the ride back to Aunt Linda's is taken up by the sound of Willie Nelson playing on the radio.

"Here." Santana interrupts their silence when her aunt's house comes into view.

"Miss Lopez's?" The Sheriff questions, chancing a glance at the girl beside him as he turns the car into the dirt drive way.

"Mhmm." Santana hums, reaching down to unlock her seatbelt not paying mind to the grin that appears on the cops face at her answer.

"You wouldn't happen to be that niece she's havin' stay with her, are you?" He asks and this only makes her roll her eyes, because she thought she was going to be able to get away without anyone knowing anything about her.

"Unless she's housing a bunch of teenage girl's, then yeah, that'd be me." She replies dryly, but then smirks at her statement, imagining Aunt Linda running some sort of underage brothel.

"Santana, right?" Hummel asks as he pulls up behind her aunt's truck and puts the patrol car into park.

"Yeah." She drawls out and reaches out for the door handle. "Thanks for the ride dude, and I assure you that I will only dispose of garbage into the correct receptacle." She smiles at him, fake smiles and he nods.

"_Santana Concetta Lopez!_" Aunt Linda's voice booms from the porch and the sound of the screen door slamming shut makes Santana shudder. "Where the hell have you been?" The older woman bounds down the few steps of her front porch and towards the police car, eyes frantically flitting from the car and her niece. "And seriously Santana, _seriously_?" She puts her hands on her hips and shakes her head, giving Santana a very disappointed and annoyed look.

"Hey Miss Linda." Sheriff Hummel speaks up just time and catches Aunt Linda's attention. He removes his hat and moseys his way over to the front of his car. "How are you doing this evening?" He asks politely, his charming smile on and his hat shifting from hand to hand.

"I've been better." She tells him, shooting a glare over towards her niece. She sighs, shakes her head and brings her hand up to run it through her dark hair. "Alright, what has she done?" Sheriff Hummel furrows his eyebrows and glances over in Santana's direction.

"Well, um, nothin' ma'am." He assures her, finally letting his hat remain in one hand and points to the young girl. "I just saved her from a rather long walk from town." He chuckles, all too well aware of the tension between the two women.

Santana sends her aunt a smug smile and starts towards the house only to be stopped when Linda steps in front of her. They have a small stare down until Santana finally huffs, spins around and walks back up to the Sheriff and extends her hand.

"Thanks for the ride Sheriff." He takes the offered hand hesitantly and they shake twice before she yanks hers back. "Better?" She asks as she twirls around to get an approving nod from her aunt who only juts her thumb over her shoulder telling her to get inside.

"Thanks so much Burt." Aunt Linda smiles at the officer and waves him off while he makes his way back into his patrol car. "You have a good night now." He waves back to her as he pulls out of the driveway and heads back in the direction of town. "Dios mio, this girl." She groans and makes her way back into the house to deal with the girl inside.

"I didn't get into any trouble." Santana defends when she hears footsteps come to a halt at her bedroom door. "I decided to go into town because this palace is like being sent into the hole in prison." She turns around after carefully placing her bag onto her bed, making sure to not let the bottles make clinking noises from within.

"And you didn't think to inform me?" Aunt Linda sighs in frustration and crosses her arms over her chest. Santana shrugs her shoulders and mimics her aunt's pose, she'd never been challenged by an authority figure about telling them of her whereabouts.

"It's not a big deal." She offers, trying to get the woman to drop it, she's home 'safe and sound' no.

"Santana, I don't know how it was back home." Linda starts and chances a step into the girl's room. "I'm sure you just came and went as you pleased." Santana nods, her eyes focused on the broken part of her doorframe by Aunt Linda's feet. "But that stops, I will have none of that here." She sternly tells her niece. "You leave, you tell me. Understood?" Santana's eyes flicker up to meet those dark brown eyes, so much like her own, and she sees that they mean business. She huffs, uncrosses her arms and nods her head.

"Understood." She stands there and waits until the sound of her aunt's footsteps fade away somewhere else in the house. She sighs, runs her fingers through her hair and lets her eyes fall back onto her bag that is still set on her bed.

It's still early, dinner won't be ready for another hour and a half, so she needs to find something to keep her busy. She's still feeling a light buzz floating throughout her body, and she figures that since Aunt Linda seems to be oblivious to the fact she's been drinking, it won't help to have a before dinner drink. Just a little something more to maintain her current state of slightly numb to try and forget that she is currently in the middle of nowhere and so very stuck.

Santana dips her hand into the depths of her bag, wraps her fingers around the neck of a smaller bottle hidden deep within and pulls it out victoriously. She pops her head into the hall, making sure the coast is clear, and she smirks when she hears the beginning of Jeopardy playing from the living room. Stepping out of her room, she holds the bottle behind her and walks down towards the entrance of the kitchen.

"I'm gonna go out back for a little while." Santana informs her aunt and heads towards the screen door that will lead her into the backyard.

"Okay, dinner is soon don't run off again." Aunt Linda's stern voice echoes from the other room.

With a roll of her eyes she sends a 'I won't, over her shoulder and steps out into the muggy air of Texas. The backyard looks very much as it did when she was younger, like shit. The grass is dead, almost a yellow, hay look to it and there's that tire she thought she was going to see in the front, only its propped up against the side of the shed. She shakes her head as she makes her way over to the dingy looking, manmade, tiny building.

When she was younger she would climb on the top and sit there for hours at a time. Sometimes her and her brother would climb to its roof, only a few feet from the ground, and jump off as though they were action heroes. The ladder is most likely somewhere hidden inside the shed and she does not feel at all in the mood to go rummaging through dirt, dust and possibly spider webs to retrieve it, so instead she settles for kicking off her shoes and using the tire to hoist herself up there.

She places the bottle on its flat surface and pulls herself up to the roof, smoothing out her clothes once she gets up there and takes a seat with her legs dangling off. From this spot she can see right into the neighbor's yard. They have a garden, it's colorful and plentiful, a vast difference from the non-existent color in her aunt's yard. A smirk does grace her lips though when she takes notice to the sprinkler desperately trying to get the very yellow and dry grass to become a beautiful green it most likely has never been.

Her hand unscrews the top of her glass bottle and she takes a quick swig, the liquid burns her lips and tongue and throat on its descent. She makes a face, never really loving the taste of straight alcohol, but through experience she's learned it's the fastest way to get what she wants out of it. A noise catches her attention and her eyes fall upon a window at the back of the neighbor's house.

She squints her eyes and sees an older woman, with blonde hair and eyes staring right back at her. The hand with the bottle falls to her lap, trying to hide it between her thighs and she lifts her other hand up to shield her from the setting sun that is so bright. The woman is giving her that look, the judgmental look adults have given her many times in life so far. Instead of caring however, she shrugs, leans back on one hand and brings the bottle up for one last sip. When she opens her eyes after her finally taste of alcohol, the curtains at that window are drawn, and the woman is gone.

* * *

><p>"Is it really necessary to pull up to the steps? I'm mortified enough as it is." Santana complains, covering her face with her hands. Aunt Linda rolls her eyes in only a way a Lopez woman can.<p>

"If you didn't have a track record as long as my body for skipping school I'd have made you get out sooner." Aunt Linda sighs. "Believe me." She moves her hand towards Santana's door. "Now get out and get an education." Santana eyes her aunt up, clenches her jaw and huffs throwing the door open and slamming it shut. "I'll be back at 3:00." Aunt Linda calls out over her roaring engine and pulls away.

"Hey!" Santana yells out, but it's too late. She shakes her head. "School ends at 1:30." She says to herself as she turns her body to face the front of the school.

Guys with letter jackets tossing a football around and giving each other high gives, to the right of them a small group of cheerleaders gushing and gossiping with one another. Teachers are walking in to the school smiling and that is what really gets Santana.

"Welcome to Pleasantville Santana." She mutters under her breath and takes her first steps towards her 'new life'.

It's strange, walking through the halls and not having anyone trying to get her to come out to the quad to chill instead of going to history. It's weird not seeing Puck waiting by her locker with that look in his eyes that told their secrets stories from the night before. Its odd yes, but most of all it sucks.

She contemplates turning around and completely ditching this twilight zone town but truth be told she can't. Not because she is stuck in some stupid 'contract' to change her ways, and it's definitely not because she doesn't want to disappoint her aunt or her parents. But, it is because she literally can't leave, everything in this town is far from civilization. She is not about to get lost in this Texas desert, plus she is far too lazy to walk that far.

First period Santana finds herself in English. Luckily she gets there in time to get a seat in the back of the room, making it easier to avoid the awkward 'new girl' stares. It would be inevitable regardless seeing as the teacher is currently calling out her roster, but at least if she's in the back she can stay out of sight.

"Santana Lopez." The woman at the front calls and Santana sighs, leans back in her chair and raises her hand. The teacher nods and makes a marking before moving on to the next name.

Her name doesn't prompt any turned heads or comments so she lets out a small sigh of relief until…

"I heard you were going here. Just thought it was a rumor." A soft voice comes from her right. She looks over to find a very pretty blonde girl in a cheerleading uniform leaning in her direction. "I thought it was you when I came in but," The girl shrugs. "I haven't seen you in years." She tells her and Santana knows that angelic voice, it sparks something in her memory and the blonde laughs with a smile as Santana is remembering.

"Quinn?" Santana asks in surprise, her eyebrows shoot up and her eyes travel along the cheerleader's entire body. "Wow, you…"

"Grew up." Quinn finishes the sentence, assuming those were the words on Santana's lips.

"Uh…" Santana shakes her head, grins and meets hazel eyes. "Yeah, you sure did." Quinn playfully rolls her eyes. "How…" She pauses, quickly glancing up at the teacher who is going over class rules and other dumb shit that she could care less about. "How'd you hear I was coming here?"

"My parents ran into your aunt at the market and she told them you were living with her. But, since Miss Linda's house is so close to the border of here and Chapman High, she wasn't sure where you'd be going." Quinn explains quickly and Santana's mouth is hanging open, still amazed at how that cute little blonde girl from Texas summer vacations is now this drop dead gorgeous girl. She nods dumbly realizing she has yet to give any kind of response. "I don't have cheer today." Quinn adds a few seconds later. "Why don't I show you around and we can catch up." She offers.

Santana can't understand how this girl can be so friendly after not seeing or speaking to each other for years. But it was something and she is in dire need of human contact away from her aunt.

"Uh, sure. That's cool." She nods while tapping her pen against her notebook idly.

She watches Quinn shift in her seat, turning her attention to the front of the room where their teacher is going on and on about Shakespeare. She does the same, sinking a little in her seat and bringing her pen cap to her lips. She tries her best to concentrate but there's nothing interesting her. So with that in mind she sighs and turns her head to the window. Not much going there either until a truck speeds in to a parking lot and the driver's door flies open.

Her eyebrows scrunch together as she watches two long legs emerge from the baby blue pickup truck and she squints to get a better look when she notices that the legs belong to yet another blonde cheerleader. A pony tail sways from side to side as a toned leg lifts to kick the door shut and it twirls behind the girl as she spins on her heels and faces the school building. She grins to herself when one of the books in the girl's arms fall and she can see her stomp her foot. Santana can only assume the shrug in her shoulders is a huff.

When the girl starts standing straight up again, retrieving her book from the ground she looks up the building and to Santana it seems as though she is looking back at her. Its brief, a second if even, but Santana _just_ sees the girl's face as she heads to the steps of the school and her lips part slightly letting out a tiny gasp. Now _that_ girl is beautiful, she thinks. But, she knew that face. She isn't sure if it was from memory or because she _wants_ to know that face.

For the rest of the period she's bored out of her mind. The teacher drones on and on about some stupid play by some old, really dead British guy and by the time the bell rings the first page of her notebook is covered in doodles and her name in various fonts at odd angles. She sighs and closes her books, bends down to grab her bag and throws it over her shoulder ready to make a break for it. But, as she nears the front of the room she is stopped by a body in a blue and white uniform.

"What do you have next?" Quinn asks slowly, Santana can't remember her accent being so southern before, it kind of takes her by surprise. She shakes her head out of that thought and glances down to the slip of paper sticking out of her text book, taking it out to show the girl in front of her.

"Hmm…" Quinn hums, her eyes scanning the entire piece of paper, a perfectly shaped eyebrow arching as she nods. "Spanish is right across from my history class so…" She glances up from the pink sheet, leaving the offer wordlessly in the air between them but when Santana continues to stare at her with a blank face she decides to continue speaking. "I can show you to your next class if you'd like." She smiles sweetly, tilting her head to the side in that way Santana remembers her doing when they were younger and other kids tried to play with them. Quinn would always tell them 'thanks but no thanks', of course this would be after Santana told them to get lost.

"Uh…" Santana finally speaks up, blinks a few times and chances a look at the door, her exit, but inevitably gives in with a nod. Quinn does the same, her smile tightening over her lips and she turns around, Santana's schedule still in her hand and leads the way towards the hallway.

The halls of Knox City High School are pretty similar to any high school, Santana would assume anyway. It's filled with kids of all different walks of life: the jocks, their cheerleaders, the nerds, the Goths and the other kids that don't really fit into a box but still roam around just the same. The only difference from this place to her school back at home are the uniforms but, as she glances around again, it seems this school has uniforms just in a different way.

The jocks walk around with their letterman jackets on like a knight wears armor, seemingly protecting them from anything and everything. The way the teachers look at the football players here and the way the cheerleaders seem to kiss the ground they walk on gives Santana the impression that anyone of these guys could rob a convenience store and the mayor would erect a statue for providing the town with yet another championship ring and trophy.

Then there are the cheerleaders, like Quinn, who don their cheerleading uniforms quite like angels wear wings and halos. She's not going to lie or protest the fact that most of these cheerleaders are drop dead gorgeous, Quinn included, but there is something to be said about a Texas cheerleader in high school. Their hair in it's perfect pony, their pleaded skirts just short enough to get a good view but long enough to leave something to the imagination and the tops of course tight enough to embellish their curves and accentuate their breasts, whether they have anything there or not.

They smile sweetly, but Santana is almost certain that each one of them has some secret or conniving plan behind those smiles and sparkling, cheery eyes. Because seriously, no one can be _that_ happy. They walk in clusters, which raises a question in Santana's mind and she quickly glances over at Quinn who has her head held high just like the rest of them, but, there's something different. She's not walking around with a posse, which is odd considering the clique her 'uniform' puts her in. Santana shrugs the fleeting thought off and continues to follow the blonde down the hall, all the while still taking in her new surroundings.

When they turn a corner Santana spots a group of those people who don't seem to fit into a certain category. There's a kid in a wheel chair who is laughing along with another kid who is a little fashion forward, he looks kind of familiar but she does not really give it a second thought because she is not trying to get to know anyone new here.

"Here it is." Quinn announces in a soft, airy voice and she spins around with her books clutched to her chest and that smile on her face. It's different than all the other ones Santana has seen during class and as they walked through the hallway. It's one she remembers from their childhood, so she nods at receiving it. "If you want, I can meet you out here after the bell. We have science together." She says while handing the pink sheet of paper back to the shorter girl. Santana looks at the paper as she takes it back and nods again. "Okay, see you in forty two minutes." Quinn says in an amusing and kind of sarcastic way and Santana watches her turn on her heels and walk to the classroom across the hall.

She looks to her left, her Spanish classroom and sees some young looking teacher greeting the students as they walk in. The way he says 'hola' makes her roll her eyes and she sighs because she always dreads Spanish classes, regardless of the teacher because they always expect her to know the answer because she's Spanish. And even though she does, it's racist or whatever.

She stands there a little longer, trying to bide her time before walking in to another new place and seeing new faces, just waiting for that douche bag to turn around in his chair and ask her if she is related to Jennifer Lopez. As the hallway begins to dwindle down to only a few students and some teachers waving them into the classroom she finally decides to take a deep breath and head on in. But, before walking in she looks to the right, down the hall and she spots that cheerleader she'd seen earlier through the window in English class.

The girl is walking slowly down the hall, schedule in hand, books in the other, holding them up to her chest and her ponytail swings from side to side as she looks at the room numbers on the walls, clearly trying to find her class. Santana's eyebrows furrow and she watches the girl continue to look frazzled, moving from quick steps to a slow pace before turning around in a circle and stumbling a bit.

"Hola." A man's voice comes from in front of her, startling her from her leering and she glares at the guy. "Class is about to start." He smiles at her and motions for her to enter the room and she does, but not without one last glance down the hall which is now void of any kind of girl.

By fifth period she's ready to get the hell out and back home, she would have left before the first bell but here, she has no option. Knox City High School is practically in the middle of nowhere and she has no wheels. There was a brief moment during science she considered bribing Quinn to ditch with her but when she looked over at her, her eyes were immediately drawn to the gold cross hanging from the blonde's neck which was being toyed around with between her fingers. That plan was obviously going to shit so she didn't even bother wasting her breath on the offer.

Quinn had apparently remembered her locker number when she had been looking at her schedule earlier because before she could go find something to do during her lunch period the girl showed up beside her. It seems they have lunch together so Quinn offers to have lunch with her and show her around a bit. Santana finds it strange but also a bit comforting, because she really wasn't too keen on the idea of having to be that new kid at a table all by herself. She had actually considered hiding out in the library, which made her laugh because she still doesn't know where the library is at her old school and she was there since the eighth grade.

It turns out that there are two places for students to eat at this school; the cafeteria or the quad which more or less is not really a 'quad' but simply an open part of campus next to the cafeteria. With a bottle of water and an apple in her hand she follows Quinn out to the quad where they find an unoccupied table beside one of the few trees that are actually around. She rests her bag on top of the table and carefully brings her leg up over the bench, she's wearing a skirt after all and does not feel like giving a free show… today anyhow.

"So how do you like it so far?" Quinn asks and Santana is broken from her blank daze of trying to block out this current part of her life. She sits down, grabs her water and unscrews the cap, her eyes scanning over the rest of the students taking up the quad at their lunch time.

"It's school, so…" She responds with a sigh and half an eye roll and brings the water bottle to her lips for a tiny sip. Quinn twists her lips and she doesn't grimace or frown at the way Santana has been so short with her since this morning. But she does not because the girl sitting across from her is right, it's school so really, how exciting can it actually be and she reasons that they are at least going to hang out after school and maybe she'll be more up to talking off school property.

They eat and drink their water in silence for majority of the period, only really speaking when Quinn points something or someone out to Santana who only nods at the fact that she hears her. She cranes her neck to look behind her when she notices Quinn avert her eyes from that direction because of course, her curiosity gets the best of her.

Behind her she finds a couple of football players, she knows this by their letterman jackets and the football in one of the boy's hands, spinning it in the air as he talks to his friends. She can't help but inwardly gag at the cheerleaders fawning all over the guys and gripping their muscles through their jackets. Mixed with that crowd is _that_ girl, the blonde from earlier. She watches the way she isn't giggling like an idiot for the sake of getting one of those guys's attention and how she isn't throwing herself at them like the others are doing and it is so intriguing.

Getting the feeling she's been staring for way too long, she lets out a sigh and turns to find Quinn packing her stuff up into her bag and getting up from the table. She looks around her and realizes that everyone else is getting their things together as well. Quinn tells her the bell is about to ring and that they should head in. She does just that, tossing her apple core into the garbage on the way in and throwing her now half filled water bottle into her bag.

The next three periods go on just like the rest of the day and when that last bell rings she finds Quinn waiting for her at her locker. They don't talk much, except for Quinn telling Santana to follow her to the car, which she explains is her mother's because hers is in the shop. Santana only shrugs and gets in, ready to be 'shown the town', as Quinn puts it, in a joking manner of course because Santana already kind of knows Knox City.

Quinn takes them to a place right before the main highway of Knox City, explaining that all the kids go to Carmel's after the first day and all she wants to do is not hang around them after having spent a long day with them. Santana can't thank her enough, silently of course, because she really doesn't feel like dealing with being cooped up in a small place with all of these new people.

They place their order to some older woman who seems to come back with their food and shakes within seconds making Santana once again, silently, thank Quinn for her bright idea of going to the pretty vacant and tiny, tiny burger place in town. It's silent for the first few minutes of the arrival of their food and they enjoy it for a while. Santana's mind goes in reverse and memories of her summers here in Knox City come in waves. The girl sitting across from her being a big part of those summers and it makes her wonder about the other girl she'd known way back when.

"So, do you still talk to Brittany?" Santana asks, taking a sip of her milkshake, it's not much of a strange question seeing as the three of them were inseparable when Santana's family would visit. She would obviously imagine the two of them being just as close when she wasn't present.

"Well, we are on cheerleading together." Quinn shrugs and slips a fry between her lips. "So, technically we still talk but, we haven't been 'close' in a while. Her mom thinks I'm a bad influence." Santana chuckles, her eyes falling half a foot from Quinn's eyes and points a finger to the necklace hanging around her neck; a cross.

"Oh yeah, Q. Fabray, bad influence." Santana shakes her head. "You were always the first of us to say whatever it was we were about to get into was a bad idea." Quinn gives the girl a small sad smile.

"Yeah, well, I kind of got in some trouble two years back." Her eyes fall to the table.

"What did you do? Forget to say your prayers at night?" Santana mocks and slaps the table while throwing her head back enjoying her own joke. Quinn, however, remains silent and uses both of her hands to move her cup of iced tea around the table in front of her, eyes locked on the straw.

"I got pregnant." Quinn tells her in that soft voice and Santana's eyes widen and she jerks her body upright. Quinn uncomfortably tears her eyes from her drink and looks up to meet Santana's curious and thoroughly confused brown eyes. "So, after that got out, Mrs. Pierce practically forbid Brittany to hang out with me." Her shoulders shrug. "Poor girl didn't know what to do. She's still such a sweetheart but her mom's crazy. It's easier to explain that we talk because of cheerleading but outside of school, we don't see each other anymore."

"That… sucks." Suddenly feeling bad and kind of awkward about this new found information Santana fidgets in her seat and glances around the street beside them. Sure, they were all kinds of close when they were kids but this kind of story is some big kid shit and they weren't around each other when it went down. It's definitely a curve ball for her that Quinn is so open with her about such a situation.

"Yeah, well, we make it work I guess. She still means the world to me." Quinn announces looking off to the side.

"That's, kind of… honestly, that's some weird shit." She shakes her head as she slowly brings her cup to her lips for the first time in her short life finding herself at a loss for words.

Thankfully Quinn doesn't want to talk about having a baby at fifteen or her fall out with her best friend since childhood and is quick to change the topic. They avoid serious conversation and settle for making fun of the people walking around Main Street and how different Knox City High is different from Santana's prep school back in Boston.

They laugh for a long time and roll their eyes when some of the boys from the school football team come over and try to hit on Santana only to be shot down coldly. When they decide to part ways Quinn tells Santana about the football game on Friday and how down here it's kind of a big deal and everyone in town always comes down to cheer the boys on and also the girls. Apparently the Knox City Panther Cheerleading squad are nationally ranked which Santana finds pretty impressive but tells the her that no matter how good they are she is most likely not going to be showing up for any kind of southern gathering.

"I'm just gonna do my time here and then get on with my life." She says to Quinn with a shrug of her shoulders and a tilt of her head.

"I hope that get togethers between friends isn't on your list of 'things not to do'." Quinn jokes and Santana shakes her head.

"Truthfully Q… I think you may be my savior here." She pats the cheerleader on the shoulder and offers her her first genuine smile since arriving in Knox City.

They make plans to get together over the weekend after the crazy rush of the season opener comes to a close. They part ways and Santana heads over to the book store remembering she saw a payphone on the corner and calls her Aunt Linda to come pick her up.

* * *

><p>When Friday comes, Santana is not the happiest camper.<p>

"I can't believe I am doing this." Santana mutters to herself, flipping the visor down and applying lip gloss. "This is _so_ not my scene." Aunt Linda rolls her eyes and watches her niece smack her lips together.

"It is now." The older woman says throwing the truck into park. Santana glares at her aunt, irritation clearly written all over her face.

"Whatever." The young Lopez huffs and pulls the handle of the door, ready to hop out but stops at the feeling of a hand on her arm.

"Just try and give it a chance. These people," Santana looks to the older woman beside her. "They grow on you." She offers her niece a small smile. "So, just try and make the best of it."

The truck slowly pulls away leaving Santana lone in the hustle of the Friday night football crowd at Knox City High School. With a huff, she shoves her hands into her pockets in her jacket and heads towards the stadium. She doesn't know why she agreed to this, it's already horrid. All the cheering and way too over excited fans of a high school football team is gross. The only thing to look forward to is the stupid guys hitting each other on the field.

But she knows why she's here. Quinn. The girl practically beamed actual rays of sunshine when Santana finally agreed to come to the game. And in all honesty, she is the only person here who has put any effort in to welcoming her. She always thought that new girls were hounded to join new cliques, football quarterbacks trying to 'court' them or whatever they called dating in 'Hayville', Texas. Plus, Quinn had pointed out their squad is good and Santana is nothing short of intrigued when it comes to girls who can do a good split in a short skirt.

Okay, technically that's two reasons, so, being here isn't really a big deal; moral support and a possible sweaty future one night stand with a hot and willing 'confused' cheerleader. She finds a spot on the bleachers right behind where the cheerleading squad is, well, cheering. She watches a girl do a flip and she smirks, that is pretty impressive. The girls finish a cheer and clap, a lot, and from what it looks like, are now taking a break. Santana assumes standing there looking pretty is not a routine, but she doesn't mind it much.

Her eyes scan the squad until finally landing on hazel eyes looking back at her. Quinn waves excitedly with a huge smile on her face and of course Santana returns the greeting, though with much less enthusiasm. When Quinn turns around something catches her eye. A few feet behind Quinn, facing the stands is another blonde cheerleader. The girl is talking to some other girl but her eyes are on Quinn, until they move to Santana's direction.

They lock eyes and Santana can swear that the hot cheerleader is smiling with her eyes at her. But, before she can gauge the situation the girl turns around and the squad performs another cheer. Santana's eyebrows furrow and her head jerks back before tilting to the side.

That _has_ to be Brittany. From the looks of things, the girl is leading the cheers and Quinn did say that Brittany is head cheerleader. As much as she tries to look elsewhere, her focus is on that blonde haired, blue eyed cheerleader for the whole game. She is most definitely not the twelve year old girl Santana remembers, Brittany is all grown up.

A whistle catches her attention and she eyes the field up as guys in bulky shoulder pads and shiny helmets take the field. She scans the crowd, wondering if she would be one of these crazy people cheering on a stupid football team if she'd grown up here. She shudders at the thought, turns back to the field, watches the guy in the striped shirt raise his hand, blow a whistle and lower his hand. A guy from the other team kicks the ball really high and when she loses it in the lights surrounding the high school stadium it's the exact moment she loses interest in the entire game.

"_Already_ bored." She sighs out in a whisper and reaches into her bag pulling out a nail file.

The game is over, apparently her school won, whatever. She pushes her way through the joyous crowd, some random people slapping her on the back as though she's the one who played in the game. She waits by the tunnel of the stadium for Quinn who said they should get some food after the game.

She stands there, back against the wall watching very excited parents, classmates and people of the town pass her by. A couple of cheerleaders walk by, catching her attention briefly but, they are all brunette's so clearly not the one she is waiting for.

It's only a few more minutes before Quinn finds Santana leaning up against the wall of the tunnel trying to avoid eye contact with pretty much anyone who walks by her. Quinn shakes her head and chuckles because to her, Santana is the same girl with the attitude and she can't help but miss it. She walks up to her and playfully nudges her in the shoulder with her tiny fist and she motions for the girl to follow her to the field house parking lot.

Santana rolls her eyes as she hops into the passenger side door of Quinn's brown pickup truck. Growing up she always imagined the little pristine Quinn Fabray to grow up driving some sort of eco-friendly car or perhaps even be chauffeured around by some uptight guy with a stupid hat on. Never in her wildest dreams would she picture Quinn Fabray driving a pickup truck with a stick shift and it's in that moment that she misses the Jetta sitting in her driveway back in Boston and she can just picture her father selling it on her just to prove a point.

"So, did you have fun?" Quinn asks breaking the silence that has seemed to fall over them without their knowledge. Santana shifts in her seat, the leather clinging to her skin in all the wrong places and she clears her throat.

"Yeah, it was riveting." Santana deadpans and gets a small giggle from the girl beside her.

"Thought so." She lets out with an amused tone to her voice and Santana watches the way she grips the steering wheel. "Every time I looked over at you it was like you were in your own world." Quinn points out with curiosity and chances a quick glance at her friend. Santana shrugs uncomfortably with the idea that maybe Quinn caught her staring at Brittany the entire time but then she realizes that that is highly unlikely.

"I'm not really into sports." Santana informs her and checks her nails in the dim light of the passing street lamps.

"Well, you're in Texas now, cheerleading or football." Quinn states as though it is a motto that babies are forced to learn at birth. "I know, it's ridiculous. It's what my mom used to say, as a joke obviously." The two share a soft chuckle at the thought of that being taught in school and how it pretty much is what their high school puts more pressure on. "Shakes and fries?" She inquires as she pulls up to a red light and puts her blinker on. Santana shrugs her shoulders and nods.

"Sure." She replies and glances out the window, her eyes landing on a baby blue pickup truck in the Mason shopping center with a bunch of cheerleaders surrounding it along with some letterman jackets. The light colored pickup truck fades from view as she and Quinn head down Marlboro Road and head over to the small burger shop on the strip.

"Remember when we were little and we used to beg your dad to drive us up here for cookies and cream milkshakes?" Quinn asks as she pulls her old, rusted truck into the small parking lot of Carmel's. Santana takes in a deep breath and lets it out slowly because it was only a matter of time before she and Quinn got into 'remember when's' from when they were kids and the Lopez's were one big happy family. "We would get Britt to pout and your father would always cave." She laughs at the memory and all Santana can do is nod. She remembers that much but the rest of her happy childhood memories are muddled by all the bad shit that happened and how her father apparently fell out of love with her mother and vice versa.

Carmel's is one of those old school malt shop burger places where girls and boys on roller skates roll up to your cars or trucks and take your order and hopefully don't drop their trays while delivering your goods. Sometimes though, when the craving for a milk shake wasn't so bad, it was actually an extra treat when one of the servers would glide over a rock or a divot and fall onto their faces. Santana is secretly praying for one of those moments for a good old chuckle she hasn't had in a while.

Quinn orders them some shakes and fries and they decide to split a burger and while they're waiting she fiddles with the radio until finally landing on a station that doesn't entirely suck in Santana's opinion. When the nerdy boy from their school finally shows up with their order they dig right in and it's only a few more moments of silence until Quinn speaks up again to start conversation.

"I heard about when your parents split up." She mumbles through a small bite of their shared burger and hands it over to Santana who gives her a tight lipped smile and a small nod. "I wanted to call when I heard but… I mean I really didn't know what to say. I still kind of don't." She explains, her eyes looking down to where her fingers are deciding on which fry to take. Santana clears her throat and takes a quick sip of her strawberry milkshake.

"We were twelve years old, I wouldn't expect anyone to know what to say to me." Santana tells her in a calm voice, her eyes fixed on the neon sign just ahead and she licks her lips to remove the excess strawberry from them. "Besides, it's their problem. Not mine." She decides on and takes a small bite from the burger before handing it back to the other girl's waiting hands.

"Still, I'm sorry we weren't there for you." Quinn adds and she shifts in her seat, the heavy conversation obviously not settling for either girl but it's better to get this stuff out in the open quick and early. Santana tilts her head to the side and eyes the girl beside her, needing to blink a few times because the neon sign has spotted her eyes.

"_We_?" Santana asks curiously.

Sure she and Quinn were good friends when they were younger, but she never felt particularly close to the rest of the Fabray clan. Sure Mr. Fabray was cool and all and Mrs. Fabray scared her way less than Mrs. Pierce but they were never really people she would refer to as a second family. But Quinn nods regardless of Santana's thoughts and turns in her seat so her back is against the driver's side door.

"Me and Britt." Quinn clarifies and Santana mouths 'oh', finally understanding Quinn's always so puzzled way of speaking and she nods. But then after the realization she goes back to shaking her head.

"Well, shit happens so… don't blame yourself." She tells her. "I find it so strange that even after Brittany flat leaves you, especially in your time of need," She says slowly, not really sure on how to put Quinn's predicament of being a teen mom. "You are the first one to always bring her up like we are still those little girl's playing on the tire swing." She raises a curious eyebrow to Quinn, who nods knowingly and chews her burger and swallows before responding.

"Brittany was the first person I told." She explains carefully, her eyes looking everywhere but at Santana. "She came with me to plan parenthood, over in Carter which is the next town over." Her eyes flicker to Santana but only for a moment before the sign catches her full attention. "We took the bus, she used her allowance money to pay for us. When we got there I was crying like a baby and she held my hand while we sat in the waiting room." Santana sips her milkshake, her eyes fixed on the girl telling her dirtiest not so secret. "I had already taken like, a dozen home pregnancy tests but I knew I had to hear it from an adult to believe it." She bites on her lower lip and Santana can tell that the memory, though two years old, was still fresh for Quinn.

"She came with me into the room, even though technically she wasn't allowed but I begged and so did she." Quinn smiles thoughtfully for a moment at the memory before it quickly fades away and she shifts in her seat, finally looking Santana in the eyes. "She said that she would be there for me if I wanted to keep the baby. She would help me raise it and would help take care of me. God," She shakes her head in disbelief. "I was only fifteen, I mean she was too and there she was making promises to me and I knew she meant it when she said them." She laughs at herself for getting a bit misty eyed and she wipes under her eye with the back of her finger. "Brittany was with me when I told my parents and she held me in her arms when I told her I was giving the baby up for adoption."

They sit in silence for a few more moments, letting the words sink in, Santana for the first time and Quinn for the millionth time. Quinn hands the burger over to Santana who takes it willingly and watches the blonde lift her milkshake up to her lips and take a swig.

"Even when her mom told her she had to cut ties with me she made sure to keep tabs on me. But it's so hard… having a mother like Annie Pierce and trying to have a life." She gives Santana a look that the is completely understood. "Eventually though, it got too difficult for her to secretly be my friend that we fell out of touch. It was hard enough for me to get back on cheerleading so we could have some sort of communication but… it's something. And I'm thankful for whatever time I can have with her." She nods her head and Santana follows suit believing that is the end of the story. "So, yeah, me and Britt's may have had a falling out or whatever it is you big city girls call it but… she's still my best friend. This," She points to her chest where her heart is. "Never goes away." Santana swallows her milkshake down hard. She'd never thought she'd return to Knox City nearly five years later to find the two best friends estranged and definitely never thought she'd find Quinn Fabray so hardened by life at the ripe old age of seventeen. But then again, this only made her feel closer to Quinn and she smirked.

"So, who's the father?" Santana chances and Quinn rolls her eyes as she pops a fry in her mouth.

"You seriously don't want to know." She shakes her head, like the information being said out loud would cause the entire world to burst into flames. But this only makes Santana want to know even more.

"Is it a secret?" Santana questions before pushing even further. Quinn sighs and looks back at Santana.

"Finn Hudson." She tells the other girl, and her mouth drops.

"Finn fucking Hudson?" Santana practically shouts, causing both girls to look around to make sure that no one has heard her. "Finn fucking Hudson?" She asks again but in a whisper and Quinn closes her eyes and nods with unfortunate affirmation. "You poor thing." Thankfully, Santana's sarcasm gets a chuckle out of Quinn and she soon finds herself joining in.

"Finn fucking Hudson." Quinn repeats while shaking her head and popping another fry into her mouth.

* * *

><p>Right now she is sincerely regretting not taking Quinn up on the ride home. But truth is, she needed the fresh air and the time to think about her stupid new life in the dampness that is currently Texas.<p>

It's pouring. Straight up and down, thick and hard rain falling from the skies above. It would figure that the day it decides not to be all sunshine and rainbows would be the day she misplaced her house key. At least, she thinks, as she kicks the bottom step to the porch that the sweaty and humid Texas air will never let her down. Even with the clouds dropping bombs of water on her head she can be always depend on the hot, sticky air of the south.

"Don't these cow people leave their doors open." She huffs, standing on the bottom step and staring at the front door as though with just her gaze she could will it open. "Television lies." Her eyes roll and she looks around wondering if there is any shelter. If only she had taken her aunt up on borrowing the truck today, if only.

So, figuring she can't do anything she takes a seat on the steps trying her best to keep the tiny hood attached to her shirt up to cover her hair. Normally she really would not care about being stuck in the rain, truth be told deep down Santana liked the rain. But not so deep down she despised it simply for the fact that her hair was not at all prepared for weather conditions such as this. In the city it was not unheard of for someone to walk around with an umbrella and Santana herself had most definitely purchased an on the spot umbrella to get from point A to point B.

But not here. In 'Randoms-ville', Texas weather was touch and go and she hated it, so did her hair. It has literally gotten to the point where the coverage is of no help and she sighs loudly throwing the hood back. Just when she is about to get up and kick in a window or throw a rock lights come from out of nowhere and it's not her aunt's truck.

"Hey." A voice comes to her ears over the rain. "You okay?" Her eyes squint, shielding herself from the rain as well as the droplets falling from her eyebrows. She stands up and moves slowly towards the vehicle.

"Yeah, locked out. I lost my key." Santana admits with annoyance, she would think that it's fairly obvious.

"Oh." The voice is closer and a shadowy figure is coming towards her. "Well, lucky for you Miss Linda gave me a spare." It's the blonde from the first day she arrived. It may be dark and it may be raining but Santana can see it's her and she's holding up a key from her key chain.

"Umm, what?" Santana stops walking and watches the girl brush past her, up the steps and to the door shoving the key into the lock.

"There you go." The girl cheers pushing the door open. Santana looks curiously at her and slowly walks into the dark house.

"Right." She quietly says and flips the light switch to the porch on and finally putting the other girl in light. She stands there, staring at the girl, who is smiling regardless of the rain pouring down on her. "I…" Santana stammers in the doorway, taking in the beauty of the girl in front of her. The girl grins, bites her lower lip and her eyes look down for a moment.

"You don't remember me, do you?" The taller girl asks with amusement and tilts her head. Santana quirks an eyebrow and then after a moment she finally finds her voice again.

"Brittany." She replies quickly in a breathy voice half confidently and the other half is happy that she's finally used actual words. The blonde, Brittany, smiles wider and nods, seemingly surprised Santana remembers her. "Of course I remember you." It's true, Santana remembers her, well, it is the new, more womanly body that threw her off at first but she remembers. Before she can say anything else a horn from the truck blares and Brittany looks over her shoulder through the rain.

"Gotta go." And with that, Brittany is off. She runs through the rain and soon enough the lights are slowly drifting away until Santana is standing in the doorway looking out into complete darkness.

* * *

><p>Santana is walking down the road from her aunt's house. Maybe it is up the road, she hasn't really decided that much yet. What she does know are the childhood memories that are flooding through her mind with each step she takes.<p>

Across the road a random tree stands. She always thought it was odd, just one tree standing alone with a huge piece of land as its backdrop. In a way it is kind of sad, that it is by itself. But even with that feeling of sorrow for the lone tree she can't help but smile.

She remembers when she was younger and the girl from up or down the road would want to play by the tree. She wanted to keep it company and Santana always wondered if the girl knew Santana felt sorry for the tree too. It actually still had the tire swing the girl's father put up one summer.

"I don't want you out there all day long." A woman's voice comes faintly from ahead of Santana.

"Well," Another voice but, this one is softer yet just as irritated. "I'll be done when I'm done."

"I don't know why you don't just bring it to your father's garage. Girl's shouldn't be fixin' trucks." The older woman sighs with annoyance but it is loud, meant to be heard.

"Okay Mom!" The younger girl's voice shouts back.

Santana smirks, she's close enough to hear a screen door shut and some hushed cursing going on. She comes to a long paved driveway, looking vastly different from the dirt road to her right. She enters the driveway, cautiously and curiously. Santana quirks an eyebrow when she spots the backside of the girl from up or down the road. Brittany is bending over the front of her truck desperately trying to fix something in the engine.

The blonde is in some tiny, cut off jean shorts and if the grease marks up and down her long, toned legs are anything to go by, Santana can assume she's been wrestling with the insides of her truck for a while now. As her eyes continue their descent over the cheerleader's legs, she breathes out in amusement at the fact that Brittany is donning those oh so typical cowboy boots she's been spotting all through town since her arrival.

She shakes her head from the boots, pretending she didn't just think that they were kind of sort of cute, and rakes her eyes up the rest of the girl's body. Her tight white t-shirt rides up as she moves and bends over to fully inspect the engine of her truck, showing off the small of her back and very in shape sides of her torso. One sleeve is rolled up, exposing Brittany's bicep which Santana can tell is nicely shaped, probably from all of those flips and cartwheels she has to do for cheerleading. Her long blonde hair is up in a messy bun, and she can see when Brittany's head turns a bit that some strands have fallen free, framing her face that also has been smudged with some grease.

She quickly glances down at her own outfit and how vastly different they are dressed. Sure, she's got boots on as well, but these are laced up, three inch suede boots that she is kind of now regretting only because there is most definitely some dirt on the toe from the service road and Aunt Linda's damn driveway. Her tight black skirt is definitely as short as those cut offs, probably shorter now that she thinks about it. And her red top accentuates her chest, which Brittany's t-shirt does not emphasize any of her assets, though she's sure they are there underneath. Of course, what would any Santana Lopez ensemble be without being topped off with one of her leather fur fringed vests, well, mini vest considering it doesn't even come to her waist.

"Shoot!" Brittany yells, jumping back and throwing a screw driver onto the ground pulling Santana away from her thoughts and oh so obvious leering. The shorter girl holds in her giggle but she still grins and continues in the direction of the blonde cheerleading mechanic.

"Everything alright here?" She asks startling the other girl.

"Oh, yeah," Brittany smiles, blowing some stray hair out of her face and wiping her greasy hands on the back of her cut off jeans. "Just having issues with the fan belt." She explains motioning to the open hood. Santana quirks an eyebrow in confusion. "It's part of the engine." Brittany smirks, finally getting a nod and a shrug from the dark haired girl.

"I wanted to come over and thank you, for the other night." Santana stammers nervously, getting close enough to the truck to lean against it, hands still firmly tucked in her pockets. Brittany watches her and eyes her up as she nods. "Honestly, if you hadn't come and saved the day well, let's just say my hair and the rain are not friends."

"Really? I thought you looked pretty." Brittany states and moves to the tool box propped on a lawn chair searching for something. Santana's eyebrows furrow and her head jerks back, completely bewildered.

"Well, yeah, so thanks and everything." She repeats her gratitude, pulling her hands free and clapping them together. Brittany grins and looks up from the tool she has finally decided on.

"You said that already." Brittany points out, seemingly amused. "And you're welcome." She nods and then flicks her head to the side, eyes falling to Santana's chest before coming up to her eyes. "You should probably take that off." She suggests moving to the front of her truck once again. Santana's eyes widen, flitting from her chest to Brittany's blue eyes on her brown ones. "Well, you don't want to get it dirty do you? Cause that's what's gonna happen when you start helping me with the carburetor." She points to the machinery inside the truck and it's obvious by Santana's facial expression that she is thoroughly confused, making Brittany laugh. She wipes her forehead with the back of her hand and motions for Santana to come by her side. "I help you, you help me." Santana mouths 'oh' and nods.

"So this is how _this_ world works." Santana sighs out in understanding, bringing her fingers up to unbutton her top revealing a tank stop underneath.

"It's how it works in _my_ world." Brittany corrects her and hands the girl a wrench. "I give, you give."

"I'm used to the world _I_ lived in, the 'I take, you take… and then you take some more'." Santana says sarcastically and Brittany is listening but goes right to work.

"That sounds like a lose-lose situation." Brittany sighs out glancing over her shoulder as she loosens a screw with her screw driver.

"I'd say it's more like a lose-win, you lose they win, twice." She rolls her eyes half heartedly.

"That's stupid. Taking isn't winning, I know it probably sounds corny but I'm a giver." She grunts as she tries to go for a screw that's on pretty tight. "It feels good." She explains innocently.

"So how do you justify _taking_ up my time and forcing me to do manual labor to fix _your_ truck?" Santana challenges with a raised eyebrow and a smirk. Brittany continues to twist away at the screw and giggles softly.

"I'm not _taking_ anything. You are _giving_ me your time as well as _offering_ your labor to thank me for totally getting you out of a jam the other night." Brittany flicks her eyes to brown ones playfully.

"Alright, alright." Santana complies, grinning and for some reason she feels her cheeks burning so she turns her head to hide it.

The two girls stand there, Santana watching Brittany at work, holding tools for the girl when needed. They worked together in relative silence with the occasional 'wrench', or 'hold this'. After a while of no conversation Brittany finally clears her throat.

"So, I've been wondering, how come when you just moved here you didn't come by?" She asks seriously, though her focus is still on her hands at work.

Truth, Santana doesn't have an answer. When she was on her way to this farm land there were two people she thought of; Quinn Fabray and Brittany Pierce. She had wanted to see both girls as soon as she got here but they hadn't seen each other in years, who knew how they'd react to a very different, much more moody seventeen year old Santana Lopez.

"I mean," Brittany continues after a few short beats of silence. "During summer vacations we were… you were my best friend." She admits quietly, finally pausing her motions and looks over at Santana. When Santana doesn't respond, Brittany turns back to the engine.

"You were my best friend too." Santana finally replies and she can see a small smile forming on the other girl's face. Brittany straightens up slightly and leans her hands on the front of her truck and turns her head to look at the girl beside her. They smile at one another for what feels like forever, Brittany softly and Santana awkwardly.

"Hand me that screwdriver." She nods towards the toolbox and tightens her lips over her teeth to hide the wide grin daring to come out. Santana raises an eyebrow, shakes her head slowly and opens her mouth a few times.

"Yeah, I don't know what that is." She wipes her hands together and stands up straight to look over at Brittany who chuckles at her.

"You're kidding me right?" Brittany giggles, reaching around the shorter girl to grab the tool in question, raises it up for her to see and then goes to work.

"Ahh," Santana lets out, nods and then leans forward once more. "See, here I was thinking you wanted me to run inside, grab a glass of vodka with a splash of orange juice to pour over your cabor-whatever." Brittany breathes out a laugh and shakes her head, and looks over her shoulder at the dark haired girl with amusement all over her face.

"Brittany!" The older woman's voice returns and Brittany rolls her eyes and tosses her mother a glance over her shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"Dinner's almost ready so come in and shower. I don't want this whole house to smell like a dirty tire." Mrs. Pierce hollers.

"Alright." The younger Pierce calls back.

"Who's this?" Her mother motions to Santana, not really interested in meeting the young girl but almost as if she just realized someone else was here.

"Oh," Brittany relaxes and smiles. "Santana, Miss Linda's niece. You remember."

"Hi." Santana greets and waves uncomfortably under Mrs. Pierce's scrutinizing stare. The older woman nods once before going back inside. "_She's_ friendly." Santana mutters sarcastically while Brittany lets out a huff and turns back to the shorter girl.

"Yeah, sorry about that. She just gets mad when I work on my truck." She explains, tapping the metal with her hand. "She says it's not 'lady like'."

"Aren't you the captain of the cheerleading team?" Santana asks, handing over the wrench in her hand to Brittany who nods and she half rolls her eyes.

"It's a _squad_ and yes, but, apparently that's not enough for her." She chuckles, but the shorter girl can tell she doesn't really mean to be funny. "Anyway, you're more than welcome to stay for dinner. I assure you, my mom is a _lot_ nicer when she's on her second glass of wine." Santana laughs, looks down and shakes her head.

"No, I should really get back to my aunts." Santana points with her thumb over her shoulder. Brittany tosses her tools back in the tool box, nodding as she wipes her hands on the back of her shorts. "Ummm, yeah… so I'll see ya." She waves before turning around to head back down or up the road to Aunt Linda's.

"See ya." She hears just as she makes her way to the end of the driveway but she turns around quickly.

"Our tire swing is still up." Santana calls out and points in the direction of the tree. Brittany looks up from her hands and smirks, nodding at the other girl's statement.

"Of course it is." They stand there, opposite ends of the driveway, grinning, until Santana waves one last time and walks up or down the road. A small smile playing on her lips the entire time.


	3. Chapter 3

**There Was a Girl**

_**August, 2005**_

"_Santana!" Quinn squeals, but her shouts are muffled by the laughter coming out of her. Her hands grip to the rope tighter and her eyes close as she spins faster and faster in circles. "Santana stop!" She giggles, her smile only grows when she hears the angelic giggles popping from her friend's mouths._

"_Okay, okay." Santana chuckles, finally stepping back from the tire swing she's been twirling into circles trying to make Quinn spin round and round and round. She moves to stand beside Brittany, who is clutching her stomach in hysterics, and leans into her as the laughter takes her over too. "Open your eyes Q." She calls out to her friend who is starting to slow down now._

"_I think that's the fastest ever." Brittany muses as her laughter subsides and her eyes widening as she takes in how long it has taken for the tire swing to unwind and slow down. _

_When it finally starts to only sway back and forth, the two girl's move forward and hold it still, letting Quinn dislodge her body from the hole in the tire. With one foot on the ground, she stumbles backwards, luckily caught by her blonde friend._

"_Whoa." Quinn sighs out, the dizziness apparent in her voice as much as in her lack of coordination which garners another round of giggles. "I can't see… there's like, a million Santana's." She points over to said girl before tumbling into the ground and rolling on her back where she grabs at her sides as she laughs again._

"_You can't even walk." Santana points at her as she wriggles on the ground, unable to catch her breath from amusement. Brittany nods in agreement and with a beaming smile, tugs at Santana's hand and pulls them both to ground to join Quinn._

"_That was awesome." Quinn finally says after regaining her breath and clear vision. She turns her head towards Santana and smirks. "You're like, the bestest spinner ever S." She points out, reaching her hand out to grab her friend's._

"_For realz." Brittany agrees, making Santana chuckle at how her bubbly buddy uses her city jargon. "Even better than my dad." She notes and this gets a nod from all three girls._

"_Hey dumbo." A voice, a boys voice, interrupts them and all three girl's shade their eyes with their hands as they sit up to find the voices owner. Santana huffs and rolls her eyes at the boy, letting her hand drop to the ground behind her so he can fully see her glare. "Yeah, you." He motions to Brittany who jerks her head back and chances a glance at both of her friends._

"_I'm not an elephant." She tilts her head to the side in confusion, a pout coming to her face when the boy laughs at her._

"_What do you want Hudson?" Santana pushes herself up to a standing position, crosses her arms over her chest and cocks a hip to the side like she's seen her mom do a bunch of times. He looks away and over to the tire swing and makes a move over to it. "Hey!" She shouts and steps between him and the tire swing. "What do you think you're doing?" Quinn and Brittany are on their feet within seconds, standing behind the other girl and mirroring her intimidating stand as best they can._

"_I was just gonna look at it." Finn spits back defensively, moving a step away from the three girls. "Geez."_

"_Well, get a good look State Puff, because you're totally not touching this thing." Santana informs him._

"_Yeah, like __**never**__ touching it." Quinn pipes up, getting a look from the dark haired girl a little in front of her and she smirks._

"_So you should probably just go home, change your plastic sheets and let your mommy give you your evening bubble bath before we make it so you can't even touch yourself." Santana hisses, walking towards the boy to only make him stumble backwards until he turns around and sprints back down the road to his house._

"_That. Was. Awesome!" Quinn cheers after Finn's figure completely vanishes over the tiny hill of the south service road. Santana smirks, shrugs her shoulders and spins to face her partners in crime._

"_No biggie." She smiles at both of the girls; finally letting her arms uncross and fall to her sides._

* * *

><p><strong>Smile<strong>

_**September, 2011**_

"_What_ are you wearing?" Aunt Linda asks, nearly spitting out her coffee. Santana scrunches her eyebrows and looks down at the outfit she has on.

"_What_?" She brings her eyes back up to her aunt's face in confusion. "_You_ told me to dress up." Santana reminds her making Aunt Linda laugh.

"And you picked _that_ out? You're not going out _clubbing_, you're going to church." Aunt Linda explains, shaking her head side to side, hands on her hips and her eyes raking over the 'outfit' her niece currently has on, which consists of a rather short and as very tight fitting dress that is low cut at the top leaving nothing to the imagination. The cardigan she has over it hides _nothing_.

"_I_ know." Santana shrugs her shoulders and brushes by the older woman and pulls the refrigerator door open. "And I figured that since, well, according to the bible beaters 'round these parts, I'm going to burst into flames as soon as I step foot onto holy ground, I may as well look decent when I arrive at the fiery gates of the underworld." She explains, bending over to grab a bottle of water. She glances at her aunt who is glaring at her. "I look hot, don't hate."

"That's not what one wears to church Santana." Aunt Linda tells the young girl.

"Says who?" Santana challenges and stands up straight to look her aunt in the eye. "If I remember correctly, the Bible does not have a section titled 'do's and don'ts for Sunday's best'." She mocks, but she can't shake the stare down from her aunt. "Look," She begins with a long sigh, finally averting her eyes from the older woman and closes the refrigerator door as a distraction. "This is the longest dress I own." She admits with a huff and rolls her eyes causing Aunt Linda to flinch.

"What about pants or jeans?" Aunt Linda inquires only to get a quirked eyebrow in response.

"Yeah…" Santana drawls out. "I don't." Is all she says, shaking her head from side to side and walks by her aunt towards the living room.

"After church we're going shopping!" The older Lopez calls out and Santana waves her off.

"Yay." She mumbles to herself with faux enthusiasm.

It's nearly nine in the morning and Santana can think of a million and one places she'd rather be than in Aunt Linda's truck, thighs sticking to the leather of the seat and on the way to church. One place in particular is dream land and the other is Boston, though, if being honest right about now she'd pick dream land.

When they pull down the block where the church is located she notices her aunt slow down the truck, her hands twisting lightly around the wheel and her head looking from side to side. She mutters something to Santana about keeping an eye open for a spot but the younger girl is too busy inspecting her cuticles to really care on whether they get a good spot, a spot at all or if they are late for the early morning sermon or mass whatever it is they do in this church.

The last time Santana was in a church was for her confirmation and it was just when her parent's divorce was finalized. Her father had the audacity to invite his 'girlfriend' at the time and it was a very awkward lunch following the ceremony. She remembers sitting in her white dress next to her mother and across from the woman who was, at the time, _with_ her father. At first she hated the other woman because she had thought, for the longest time, that it was her fault that her family was all screwed up.

But, as she got older she came to understand that it wasn't the other woman's fault at all and that it was her parent's fault. Love was crap and all it does, in her life anyway, is drive people apart. If love was enough then her parent's would still be happily married, her brother would visit once and a while and there would be no stupid Patti being a c-u-n-t. But life blows, it's like a bad hand at poker just when you've been on a roll and decide to put everything you got into the pot. It takes it all and leaves you with nothing.

She's taken out of her musings at the sound of Aunt Linda's truck coming to a very loud and squeaky halt just at the corner of Charles Avenue, the street that holds the church. There are families walking by them on the sidewalk smiling and all dolled up in their slacks, button downs, sun dresses and a lady with white gloves holding her bible close. With a roll of her eyes she pulls the lever that is the door handle and pushes the door open, creaking as it does so.

Aunt Linda meets her around the truck on the sideway and tries her best to close the cardigan Santana has on but gives up after a few tries. She huffs and crosses her arms over her chest when her aunt turns around to lead her towards the church where people are congregating outside on the small staircase. Basically everyone from Knox City High School are here with their families and Santana is desperately hoping that none of them try and say 'hi' to her and try to introduce her as the new girl. She's going to church and that's enough 'niceness' for the day.

Of course her plans are altered when she hears her aunt greeting someone with a joyous 'hello' and she clenches her jaw really praying to whoever is listening that she does not have to play the part of the 'friendly' niece. Lucky for her, when she looks up she locks eyes with a pair of hazel ones she has just recently become reacquainted with. Quinn smiles as she steps down to the sidewalk and Santana nods, her arms loosening from her chest as the other girl approaches.

"Didn't think I'd see _you_ here." Quinn says in that soft way she speaks and Santana glares at her aunt, unbeknownst to her of course, and shakes her head. Quinn chuckles at the nonverbal response and nods in understanding and she unconsciously looks Santana up and down. "I take it you didn't think you'd see you here either." She points out with a smirk.

"Wasn't really on my top ten." Santana sighs out and looks around at the other people standing around them.

"And you remember my niece Santana." Aunt Linda's voice comes into her ears at the sound of her name and she jerks her head in the direction it came from. Aunt Linda is motioning towards her with a huge smile on her face. Santana unglues herself from the spot she's been standing in since they arrived and takes a place beside her aunt. "Santana, these are Quinn's parents." They smile back at her politely, Mrs. Fabray doing her best not to blatantly look the girl up and down.

"It's so nice to see you again dear." Quinn's mom says and she seems sincere enough so Santana nods, forcing a smile to her lips. "I can tell you that Quinnie was so excited to hear that you were going to be staying here for the year." Santana's eyes flicker to her aunt who still has that slap happy smile on her face.

"Yeah." She finally speaks and that only seems to make Judy Fabray grin even wider making Santana fear that she may have just opened the door for more questions and comments. Thankfully, she is saved by a booming voice from behind her.

"Russell." A man greets loudly, his voice is deep but is oddly soothing. When everyone looks over her shoulder at where the voice came from, she turns around in curiosity to find a tall, blonde haired man walking to where they are standing. "What time did you close up shop last night? I tried to get there to help but I was so busy at the dealership." Santana quirks an eyebrow as she watches the interaction between the two men.

Mrs. Fabray continues to talk animatedly with Aunt Linda who, when she brings up shopping, pulls Quinn into their little circle of 'girl talk'. Beside the tall man, who is still talking to Mr. Fabray about shops and things, appears a blonde woman of average height, her hair perfectly done in an up do and her makeup done just so, that it looks natural. The woman looks over her shoulder and mumbles something in a hushed voice, her hand making a quick but subtle motion by her hip and when Santana raises her eyes she spots Brittany.

Santana realizes that clearly, this woman is Brittany's mother, the same woman who brushed her off the other day as if she had never known the young girl. She remembers when they were younger and Mrs. Pierce would always yell at Brittany for getting grass stains on any of her clothes, for messing up her hair even the slightest and the time she said she wanted to be a professional motocross rider. The woman was so strict and so old school when it came to gender roles it was actually surprising to Santana that someone as free spirited as Brittany was as a kid actually came from Annie Pierce.

Brittany's blue eyes flicker up from the front of her dress where her mother is complaining about _something_ and locks eyes with Santana. She smiles at her and playfully rolls her eyes at the fact that her mother is fixing her dress. Santana rolls her eyes in return and shrugs her shoulders.

She suddenly feels that awkward tension when the talking stops and all eight of them are standing in silence. Mrs. Pierce is the first to make a move, grabbing her husband by the elbow and nudging Brittany in the shoulder so they can make their way inside. The woman doesn't even spare a glance at Judy Fabray who used to be over at the Pierce's annual end of the summer barbeque every single year. Brittany, before she follows her parents through the double doors of the church, glances over her shoulder to both Quinn and Santana and smiles.

The Fabray's and the Lopez's follow suit, albeit a few minutes later, and head on up the steps and into the church finding seats beside each other. Quinn sits next to Santana and leans over to whisper something about how Mrs. Pierce is the 'ice queen' of Knox City. Santana can totally attest to these feelings and finds the name to be quite suitable, especially when she chances a look over on the other side of the aisle to where the Pierce's are sitting to catch the matriarch of the family staring at her outfit, openly judging her.

Santana wonders if Brittany's mom was always like this. So rigid and just a straight up bitch, and maybe it's a bit premature to categorize her neighbor as a bitch but being one herself, Santana can hone in on other bitches easily. Her attention is stolen from giving Mrs. Pierce a hard and well deserved stare down, even if she is unaware of it, by something falling in to her lap. When she looks down she finds that Quinn is trying to hand her the hymn book and it's quite hard to stifle a chuckle that's a mix of a laugh and a huff.

"Just open it and mouth the words." Quinn whispers in her ear with a shrug of her shoulders. "I do it all the time."

It's not a bad idea, she's faked more than enough things in her life. As she flips through the pages absentmindedly she thinks about how weird it must be for Quinn to be sitting in church, gold cross around her neck, parents to her right and a best friend forbidden to see her just a few feet away. She is sure it's not lost on the other people sitting in this church that Quinn had a baby, the whole 'I had a big lunch' line can only work for so long until people start to wonder.

For an hour and a half Santana follows Quinn's lead, standing when being asked to stand and even when not asked, kneeling when being asked to and not, and pretending to sing the words to songs she's never heard before in her life. There is one moment she actually tries to fall asleep with her eyes open but she figures out that it is impossible and just something lazy people made up. The one thing she does find herself able to do, besides acting like she's a good Christian girl, is chance glances over in Brittany's direction.

Each time she looks over she catches the blonde girl's eyes and then a smile is tossed in her direction. But whenever she is about to respond with some sort of a facial recognition, Mrs. Pierce sends an icy glare her way. She learns fast to keep her eyes forward or on the book of hymns in her lap. After she thinks enough time has passed, she slowly turns her head to the aisle and lets her eyes fall onto Brittany one more time, only to grin because girl has actually fallen asleep. She has to bite her lip to hold in a hearty laugh because Mrs. Pierce sighs loudly and shakes her daughter back to consciousness.

Church in Knox seems to end the same way as football games do here, with everyone being all jolly and shaking one another's hands and wishing them well. Santana is seriously starting to think she's entered another dimension. Quinn nudges her out of their row of seats until they are finally heading towards the door. Outside is muggy, just like every other day has been so far and she runs her fingers through her hair to make sure it's still under control.

She stands outside, awkwardly, next to Quinn while her aunt and Mr. and Mrs. Fabray have 'adult' time. Mrs. Pierce is all smiles as she descends the steps of the church, waving at people like she's the pope, telling people she'll see them at meetings and games. Mr. Pierce sends Mr. Fabray a quick head nod but is pretty much hot on his wife's heels as she walks down the sidewalk to where their vehicle is parked. Brittany isn't in as much of a hurry as her parents are to get away and she moseys herself on over to where Santana and Quinn are standing in a comfortable silence.

"Hey guys." Brittany greets the pair who both turn around at the same time, Quinn smiles back up at her and nods.

"Hey Britt." She replies, letting her arms uncross from her chest and fall to her sides. Brittany's eyes flicker towards Santana, obviously expecting some sort of greeting from her in return.

"Hi." Santana offers after a few quiet seconds and looks down at her nails, a simple ploy to tear her eyes from those penetrating blues.

"Didn't think I'd see you here." The tall cheerleader says straightforwardly, a playful smirk on her lips as she shifts her weight from foot to foot in her cute Sunday shoes. Quinn laughs along and elbows Santana, getting her attention and pointing at Brittany.

"I said the same thing." Quinn reminds the dark haired girl who just grins and raises an eyebrow.

"Well, don't really have a choice with Aunt Linda in charge." Santana grumbles, motioning with a jerk of her head to the woman she is considering starting to call her 'warden'. The girls chuckles subside and the three girls stand in an awkward silence for a few moments.

"Oh, I heard a rumor you're in contention for Homecoming Queen." Quinn breaks the quiet, her eyes on the tall blonde in front of her and this information catches Santana's attention, simply as a form of momentary interest of course. Brittany bashfully lowers her head, and her hands clasp together in front of her and her fingers twist around one another as she kicks at the ground.

"Uh," Brittany starts. "Yeah, my mom's pretty amped." She rolls her eyes, tossing glance over her shoulder at the woman in question who is standing at the corner having a conversation with some Knox City pedestrian.

"Well, congratulations anyway." Quinn adds, reaching forward to place a friendly hand on the other girl's arm.

"Brittany!" Mrs. Pierce's voice booms from down the block, in a motherly yet authoritarian tone causing Quinn to retract her hand. Brittany lets out a sigh of annoyance and shrugs her shoulders before turning back to look at two girls.

"I guess I'll see ya." She waves and turns on her heels to head towards her ever so demanding mother, who looks like she is tapping her foot as she waits for her daughter.

Quinn turns back to the adults and pretends to join the conversation, but Santana stands still, watching Brittany slowly make her way to where her parents are waiting for her. Just before she gets about halfway, she looks over her shoulder and sends Santana a sweet smile.

"Come on Santana, we should get going." Aunt Linda comes up from behind her and tugs on her elbow. With one last glance, she realizes Brittany is gone, and she follows her aunt down the street. "You know," The older woman throws her arm around her niece's neck and playfully pulls her close, much to the younger girl's disapproval. "Maybe if you keep coming to church with me on Sunday's, you could meet a nice Christian boy."

For a few moments, Santana remains quiet, letting the words settle in her mind as she and her aunt continue their journey towards the truck. She's never actually said it out loud, not in front of anyone at least. Come to think of it, does it even really count if she's said it to herself in the shower? But for some reason or another, she thinks 'fuck it', because this town really means nothing to her so what does she have to lose. And, she also figures, maybe this will get her out of having to go to church every Sunday.

"Aunt Linda," She starts getting a hum in response from her aunt. "I'm a lesbian." Santana tells the older woman, she actually even wonders for a moment if her mother or father has shared their suspicions with Aunt Linda about this, not that it really matters.

Aunt Linda is silent for a few seconds, maybe even minutes. Santana glances over at her and watches as her expression has remained the same since they started walking.

"I knew a lesbian once." She says and all Santana can do in response is raise an eyebrow and keep walking.

* * *

><p>Santana is lying on her stomach on the floor in the living room, her history book opened up in front of her and her notebook set up next to it. She kicks her legs in the air behind her, crossing and uncrossing them at her ankles as she reads over chapter ten. School has never been very hard for her, she's one of those naturally smart students, also, she finds the more information she can take in, the better and more unique her insults will be. Historical facts mashed up into an insult have rendered many of her victims speechless, an accomplishment she is very proud of.<p>

As she thumbs to the next page, light tapping on the front door pulls her out of her journey through Western Civilization. Her head cranes towards the direction of the front of the house and her ears perk up for the sound of Aunt Linda's footsteps, only to remember that her aunt is in the backyard doing 'yard work'. She sighs in annoyance, because she was totally getting her Roman Empire on, and pushes herself up from her lying position to go and answer the door.

Upon opening it, she is greeted by some ginger haired, doe eyed, smiley looking woman who is clutching tightly to a binder and some really atrocious, sorry excuse for a purse hanging from her shoulder. Santana quirks an eyebrow, leans her arm into the door, and openly eyes the woman up and down. The woman shifts, uncomfortable under the girl's stare, but it does not deter her from moving her binder fully into one arm and extending the other.

"Hello, you must be Santana." The ginger says, her voice is high pitched and soft, like how baby powder would sound if it could talk. The teenager glances down at the offered hand, and after a tiny battle inside her, she slowly reaches out and shakes the woman's hand. "I'm Emma Pillsbury, your social worker." Emma beams, slowly pulling her hand back and Santana catches the way the woman in front of her reaches into her back and pulls out a travel size antibacterial cleanser.

"Wait." Santana shakes her head from Emma's obvious germaphobic ways, and her eyebrows knit together. "Social worker?" She asks incredulously, crossing her arms over her chest and stands up straighter than before. "What am I, some kid in the system? I don't think so." She shakes her head again and reaches for the door, all ready prepared to shut the door in Social Worker Emma's face.

"Miss Pillsbury." Aunt Linda's voice comes out of nowhere and within seconds she is standing beside Santana, pushing her niece against the door to open it wider and motioning for the young woman to enter. "Come on in." She smiles as she is drying her hand in one of the dish towels from the kitchen.

"Thank you, and please, call me Emma." She says as she steps over the threshold and into the Lopez's living room. "I'm just here to introduce myself really, and to kind of get to know you a bit." The ginger haired woman explains, looking around the room at the furniture and other knick knacks.

"Please, have a seat." Linda offers, pointing towards her favorite recliner, but Emma simply holds her hand up and politely shakes her head.

"No thank you Miss Lopez."

"Linda."

"Very well." Emma nods and clutches her bag tightly in her hands. "I wanted to clear a schedule with you and Santana, for appointments." She looks between the two Lopez woman, one has a smile on while the other a scowl.

"Santana doesn't have much going on, besides school." Aunt Linda explains, tossing the dish towel over her shoulder once again.

"I see, well, perhaps you'd like to pick a day to come by my office." The young woman suggests and Santana only glares back at her. "How about Wednesday afternoons?" She pulls out her datebook and flips through a few pages until she lands on next week's schedule.

"That sounds fine." Linda answers when she realizes her niece is not going to provide any kind of response for the poor woman standing rigidly in the living room. Emma smiles, nods and pens a note in her book before closing it up neatly and shoving it back into her bag.

"I'm still waiting for more paperwork, until then, we can begin sessions this upcoming Wednesday after you get out of school." She tells the teenager, who remains still in her position of crossed arms and a hard stare. "It was very good to see you again Miss Linda."

"Of course. Tell William I said 'hello'." Emma nods as the older Lopez shows her out of the house and they wave one another goodbye. "You know," Aunt Linda's voice enters the house before she does. "You could have been a little more polite." Santana scoffs, finally moving from her position in the middle of the living room and falls to the couch.

"I think that lady was polite enough for the entire world." She huffs, picking up the remote, preparing herself for some television watching.

"Uh uh." Aunt Linda sneaks up and tugs the remote from her, quickly shuts it off and points to the books still spread out on the ground. "Homework." Santana rolls her eyes, drops her shoulders and pushes herself up from the couch to head back to what she'd been doing prior to her new s_ocial worker's_ arrival.

"Aye aye captain!" She salutes her aunt, who only continues to walk away and flips her niece the bird without even turning around. Santana raises an eyebrow and smirks. Maybe Aunt Linda is more like her than she realized.

* * *

><p>Santana finds herself at Pierce Parts and Tires, clearly the garage of Pierce Motors, the high end car and truck shop from town. When she walks in to the building where the office is, she spots Quinn sitting behind the desk concentrating.<p>

"Don't tell me you work here." Santana says, breaking the blonde from her thoughts, dragging her eyes away from her textbook and up to the dark haired girl in front of her. Quinn smiles when she sees that the intruder of distracting her from her homework is Santana.

"Yeah, like Mrs. Pierce would let that happen." Quinn rolls her eyes. "Mr. Pierce is cool, he lets me stay here and do my homework. Luckily, this place is too 'dingy' for _Madame Pierce_ to drop by. I'm sure if she found time in her 'busy' schedule to stop in, he'd get in trouble for several things." Her eyes flitter to the glass door in front of her and to the right. "What's up, were you looking for me?" She asks, leaning forward to rest her forearms to her books.

"Umm, actually, is your dad here?" Santana asks in exasperation, she'd had an irritating experience with her aunts truck the whole way to this place. "Aunt Linda _needed_ me to pick up some part or whatever, I don't know cars." She shrugs her shoulders and sighs, flailing a post-it in her hand to show she's got it written down.

"Oh yeah," Quinn nods, sitting up a little straighter in her seat and points towards the glass door. "Just go right through there, he's just working on paper work in the back office." She informs her friend as she leans back into her chair. "It's all the way in the back to the right." She lifts her hands up and motions in the air of how Santana should journey through Pierce Parts and Tires. "Just walk through the garage past the lifts." She smiles and goes back to her books while Santana nods and pushes through the glass door, immediately greeted by music.

She chuckles, shakes her head and mumbles something about classic rock and Texas under her breathes. 'Slow Ride' is blaring as she slowly walks through the place, glancing around at the huge room and all of the tools. When she gets halfway through something catches her eye and she stops and grins, suddenly finding herself intrigued.

About twenty feet away is a girl with a typical, standard garage jumpsuit on. The top is rolled down to her waist and the sleeves tied in the front, revealing a grease smudged tank top. The girl's hair is thrown up in a messy bun and the wrench in her hand seems to be serving itself with an unusual purpose, a faux microphone.

The girl dances around, seemingly oblivious to her audience. Santana hasn't even realized her legs taking her in the direction of the lithe dancer, until the song comes to a close and she claps slowly. Brittany, clearly startled, whirls around quickly and smiles when she finds who her fan is.

"Jesus, you scared me." Brittany sighs in relief, gripping at her chest which makes Santana chuckle. "How long have you been leering?" She asks, shock and embarrassment quickly leaving her and she tosses the wrench onto the toolbox. Her eyes slowly lift back up to meet Santana's as she waits for an answer and wipes her hands on a rag from her back pocket.

"Long enough to see you've still got moves." Santana comments, feeling satisfaction over the blush that begins to creep up to the Brittany's cheeks who turns away just in time. "You move like a stripper." She adds with a quirked eyebrow, watching on as Brittany shoves the dirty rag back into her pocket. "It's hot." She says before she even thinks, catching herself off guard.

"Umm," Brittany turns around to face Santana again, surprised to find the other girl blushing a bit and she smirks. "Thanks." She smiles, her bottom lip finding its place between her teeth.

"Yeah." With the awkwardness completely taking over, Santana's eyes flicker in the direction that Quinn had originally instructed her to go. "Mr. Fabray?" She walks backwards, pointing over her shoulder towards the office she assumes is his.

"Oh," Brittany shakes her head, as though it would be obvious that Santana is here for something and not just to spy on her dancing. "Yeah." She motions to the corner and Santana smiles before she turns to walk away. "Hey!" Brittany calls out, and Santana whips her body around in response. "Are you…" She starts, and too occupy her nerves, she picks up a socket wrench and taps it against her palm. "Do you want to do something, today?" She looks at the car in front of her, hood open and random tools laid out. "I'm almost finished here… I mean," She looks back at the dark haired girl. "If you don't have plans of course." She smiles when Santana finally does, but it doesn't stop her hand from gripping the metal tool tighter and tighter.

"O… okay." Santana stammers.

"Okay?" Brittany's eyes widen slightly, cautiously not wanting to seem too excited about this. Santana nods twice.

"Okay." She repeats, but this time with more confidence.

"Cool, alright." The cheerleading mechanic grins down at the wrench in her hand and moves to put it back into the tool box. "Let me finish up here." Brittany motions to the car and gets right back to work.

* * *

><p>By the time Santana is finished talking with Mr. Fabray, which was a lot longer than she had anticipated and hoped for, Brittany is done doing whatever mechanically thing she'd been working on earlier. Quinn had already left, seeing as her father did take about thirty minutes of Santana's life trying to explain what exactly Aunt Linda had to do and with what. It honestly didn't really matter because she's already forgotten by the time she walks back out into the garage and finds Brittany patiently waiting, sitting on the hood of one of the trucks she's probably been doing work on.<p>

"You ready?" Brittany asks as she hops off of the truck and shoves her hand into her pocket to grab her keys. "My trucks right out front." She motions over her shoulder and Santana can see she is heading towards a smaller door, hidden within one of the garage doors.

"Hmm." She hums to herself, she always figured that the mechanics used the extremely large garage door to get to work. "Actually, I've got Aunt Lee's truck." Santana explains, suddenly remembering the metal stabbing her fingers and palms. But her attention is more on Brittany who chuckles. "What?" She tilts her head and furrows her brow, feeling that she may be offended at any moment.

"It's nothing, I just…" Brittany shrugs her shoulders and idly plays with the keys on her key ring. "Haven't heard that name in a while, that's all." She sends the shorter girl one of her cute smiles and the ice that had been starting to course through Santana's veins is immediately defrosted, realizing what she means.

"Yeah," She breathes out in amusement, and shakes her head. "I guess I haven't even called her that in a while." She muses, looking up from the keys and the box in her hand to find Brittany smirking at her with a raised eyebrow.

"How bout, you drop the truck off and then you hop in mine." Brittany motions with her hands as she explains the plan. "And then," She shrugs her shoulders and twists her lips. "We hang out?" She chews the inside of her cheek as she watches Santana think everything through, and then smiles when the other girl finally starts nodding her head.

"Okay." Santana agrees, and follows the retreating form of Brittany to the parking lot out front.

Pierce Parts and Tires is actually not that far from Aunt Linda's, but it feels like it is simply due to the fact that Santana cannot drive a stick shift. She can feel the embarrassment and frustration burn into her cheeks each time she catches Brittany's blue eyes flicker into the rearview mirror to look at her. Thankfully, she allowed Santana to talk her into driving in front of her, of course after being told she knows these roads better. So, obviously it takes them a little longer to reach home than it would have if Santana was given the rights to her beautiful automatic back in Boston.

She notices how Brittany drives right up to her Aunt Linda's driveway, completely surpassing her own, and pulls all around ready drive out when Santana hops in. The dark haired girl groans, then curses as she forces the truck into park, pulls the emergency break up, and kicks the driver's side door open. Aunt Linda is sitting on a rocking chair on the porch with a grin on her face, making it clear to her niece that she enjoying giving Santana errands to run.

"Oh, please, don't get up." Santana holds her hand up to her aunt as the woman continues to rock forwards and backwards in her chair. "You know, Mr. Fabray loves to talk." She sighs, handing the box of car parts over to her Aunt.

"Yes, why do you think I sent you?" Aunt Linda smirks as she looks over the box and clearly written instructions from the man in question. Santana's mouth drops, her eyebrows knit and she shakes her head.

"You…" She is about to give her aunt a piece of her mind, but when the humming of a waiting engine catches her ear, she takes a deep breath and clenches her fists at her sides. "I'm going out." She tells the woman and spins around ready to make a run for it.

"Hey!" Aunt Linda calls out, finally jumping up from her chair and by the time Santana turns back around the woman's already got her hands on her hips. "Where do you think you're going? There's no gallivanting when you live under my roof." She gives her niece a pointed look, which only makes the teenager cross her arms and huff.

"I'm not 'gallivanting', like I even could in this boring, one road town." Santana rolls her eyes and glances over her shoulder. "Brittany asked if I wanted to do something, so I said yes." She informs her aunt, as though challenging her to call Santana a liar. Aunt Linda steps a little further out onto the porch and peers over to where the powder blue pick-up truck is parked in her driveway. "Why would I lie about that?"

"You're a Lopez, you'd lie about anything and everything." Aunt Linda pokes her shoulder with her finger. "Okay, go have fun. But please, don't try and corrupt the Pierce girl." She raises an eyebrow and wags her finger in the air.

"How do you know she won't corrupt me?" Santana fires back and flinches just in time to miss a playful smack her aunt tries to send her way.

"Alright, alright. Go!" Aunt Linda waves her niece away and slowly takes her seat in her rocking chair.

When she enters the powder blue pick-up truck, Brittany is all smiles and turns up the radio before pulling out of Linda Lopez's driveway and back out onto the south service road. Santana doesn't question where they are going because she doesn't know anywhere even if she were told. The only places she knows of are Carmel's, Pierce Parts and Tires and that lovely liquor store she'd been to in town. She assumes Brittany is not going to be taking her to go and socialize, or at least she's hoping, and the only other place she can think of is Church, and she doesn't really see them going to hang out there either.

"Where are we going?" Santana finally asks, as she starts to worry about their destination being something holy or full of people. Brittany chuckles and lowers the volume down on the radio.

"The barn my dad owns." She tells the girl beside her as she turns off of the service road and down a horribly paved side road.

"Oh." Santana nods, vaguely remembering the Pierce barn from when she was younger. "That's cool." She adds with uncertainty.

They pull up to a small patch of land about fifteen minutes after Brittany turned off of the service road. It's smaller than she remembers, but then again, so is everything else so far. There's a manmade wooden fence surrounding the property that Mr. Pierce must own, it's about as big as a football field she figures. The barn is red, looking as though it has recently been painted, and the trim around the big doors is white kind of like a playschool farmhouse.

"Just over that way, you can see most of town." Brittany points through the windshield as she pulls the keys out of the ignition and pushes her door open. "Come on, I'll show you."

Santana silently follows, thankful that today she's opted for reasonable footwear and not her usual kind. She tucks some hair behind her ears that the wind decides to blow around, and cautiously follows the long legged blonde through the tall grass and bits of hay that are scattered about. They only walk thirty yards or so until they hit a hill that overlooks Main Street and other roads in Knox. The trees that hang over them seem to be there for decoration and do nothing to shield them from the brightly shining sun that is slowly getting closer to earth, preparing to set.

"Isn't it pretty up here?" Brittany asks, her eyes fixed on the town below and her hand is up to shield her face from the sun which of course is of no use. Santana nods, glancing from the girl beside her and down at the buildings and houses that look so tiny from where they are.

"Yeah." She whispers, actually finding this experience relaxing her a bit. "It's nice." Brittany plops herself down onto the ground and pats the spot beside her, obviously trying to get the other girl to join her.

"Sit." Brittany says softly, crossing her legs at her ankles and leaning back onto her hands.

"Okay." Santana lets out slowly, positioning herself so that the least bit of her skin actually comes in contact with the grass that looks as though it could give her rug burn.

"Remember when we were younger and we didn't care about anything, except hanging out with each other." Brittany says, her eyes focused on the sky.

"Sunrise to sunset." Santana jokes, it's something their parents used to say to each other about the girls. The two laugh, smile and nod their heads at the memory, eyes still fixed on the clouds decorating the afternoon sky.

"It was so great, back then… when the only think that I had to worry about was when you were leaving. Ya know, at the end of the summer." Brittany shrugs her shoulders and lets out a sigh. "Is it weird that I feel like that again?" She asks, turning her head to look at Santana, who looks back at her in confusion.

"No." She breathes out before she even realizes she is speaking and Brittany's eyes quickly find hers. She awkwardly shifts her body, moving on the dry patch of grass that has become her seat and she reaches down to tug at one of the blades, freeing it from the ground. "I mean, I _am_ going to be leaving at the end of the school year, so…" She doesn't say anything else, because when it comes down to it, there's really nothing else _to _say. Once she takes her last final, she's out of this cow town and off to wherever the wind takes her. Preferably out onto the open road with her Jetta and no parents around holding her back.

Brittany nods and she looks down at the space that separates her and Santana's bodies. Her mind wanders to when they were little and how the notion of 'personal space' was a saying that never applied to them. She gnaws on her lips, suddenly feeling as if she's shared way too much with the one person she used to feel so close with, the one person she'd never felt anxious around.

"I guess seeing you and Quinn is nice though." Santana adds as an afterthought when a few minutes of silence goes by. She looks over at Brittany, who is still in her own mind, but nodding regardless.

"Yeah." Brittany verbally responds, shaking her head from her thoughts and smiles back up at Santana. "We've missed you." The dark haired girl chuckles and looks back up at the sky.

"You know, Q told me about everything." She informs the cheerleader, her words come out a little colder than she had intended.

"Oh." Brittany's head lowers and she pulls at the grass to her side. "Yeah, about that."

"She explained everything. Ya know." She jumps in before Brittany decides to give her a long winded explanation of reasons as to why the two are no longer 'besties'. "That your mom kind of rides your ass and didn't want you to be associated with a 'bad seed'." Her eyes roll as she remembers the conversation she'd had with Quinn about the whole 'baby gate' situation. "I mean, I get it. Picture perfect family and all." She tosses the blade of grass she's been twisting around her finger back to the ground and lets out a sigh as silence takes them over again.

"Maybe from the outside it does, look perfect that is." Brittany says after a few minutes, referring to her family. "But, it's far from perfect." She looks down thoughtfully and twists her lips. "It's like Cher said." Santana looks at her curiously and quirks an eyebrow.

"Cher?" She asks in complete confusion.

"Yeah, you know, from 'Clueless'." Brittany clarifies in all seriousness. "When she says that thing about that painting." She watches and waits on for it to click in Santana's head, and when she sees that light of recognition go off she continues. "My family is like a Monet, from far it looks nice, but up close, it's a big old mess."

Santana's eyebrows furrow, her lips part slightly and her head jerks back as she analyzes the blonde's expression and the way she's just explained her family. It's never actually occurred to Santana that maybe someone as happy and carefree as Brittany could have such a blue outlook on something. She half smiles at the girl, who in return does the same and then slowly they both look back up to the sky and watch as the sun slowly begins to lower.

"I didn't mean…" Santana begins, the feeling she's over stepped by pretty much calling Brittany's mother a hard ass and her family the Brady's weighs down on her. But, the cheerleader shakes her head and places a gentle hand onto own, the softness of her touch a big difference from that of the dryness beneath her.

"Don't." She tilts her head to the side and sends Santana a small smile, before returning to adore the sky as it turns a light shade of pink and purple.

They sit there, swapping stories of their youth back and forth, as the sun sets and turns the sky into a dark blue. Light conversation continues as they drive back up the south service road to head home, all the while nearly forgetting that they are no longer those little kids playing in the back of Aunt Linda's yard and hopping the Pierce's fence. But for some reason, it feels just the same as it does different, and somewhere deep down they don't even know exists, is the feeling that it might actually feel a little bit better than it used to.

"Thanks for taking me out on the town." Santana says as she unbuckles her seatbelt, preparing to exit the truck. Brittany nods, throws her arm over the back of the bench seat she's sitting on and smiles.

"We should do this again." She notes, her eyes sparkling from the moonlight and stars above. Santana opens the door and slowly hops out, turning to face Brittany before she shuts the door and heads inside.

"I'd like that." The dark haired girl replies, standing there as the other girl simply stares back at her. "Well, goodnight." She waves as she shuts the door, missing the soft way that Brittany says 'goodnight' in return.

* * *

><p>"Santana!" Aunt Linda bellows from some part of the house, her exact location not really a concern to the teenager. What <em>is<em> of importance at the moment is her lip gloss and instead of rushing to the shriek of her name, she leans closer to the mirror in her room.

"Yes?" Santana replies carelessly as she pulls back from the mirror and puckers up her lips.

"I haven't got all day and not only that but, you're going to be late." Linda tells her and from the sound of it, she's bustling around in the kitchen. Santana rolls her eyes, twists the cap to her lips gloss back on and grabs her bag.

"Okay, okay I'm coming." She announces and walks down the hall to find Aunt Linda standing by the front door, tapping her foot impatiently. "Chill out Aunt Lee or you'll have a coronary." She smirks, tilts her head to the side and walks her way to the door.

"No thanks to you." Linda mumbles under her breath, but loud enough for her niece to hear her. "Smartass." She smacks the back of Santana's head lightly, but with enough force to make a point and she follows her niece's path out the door. "Tomorrow I'm just gonna leave you, then you'll have to walk to school." The younger Lopez huffs and leads the way down the porch, quickly descending the steps. "What the…?" At this, Santana stops in her tracks, looks back to see a confused smile on her aunt's face and raises an eyebrow in her own confusion.

Santana looks to where Aunt Linda is staring to only have the same surprised expression take over her face. Parked in their driveway is Brittany's truck, with its owner leaning her back against the front of it and her hands clasped in front of her.

"Mornin' Miss Linda." The young girl greets and pushes herself from the truck.

"Mornin' Britt." Aunt Linda waves curiously and walks down the steps. Brittany looks from Aunt Linda to Santana a few times before clearing her throat. "Umm, yeah, I've gotta go to work, Britt," She points to the cheerleader. "See this one gets to school."

"Sure thing." Brittany nods as the older woman hops into her own truck, leaving the teenagers in the driveway.

"Hey." Santana drawls out, taking a step or two in the other girl's direction.

"Hey." Brittany replies, slightly more confident and with a bright smile.

"Sorry about crashing," She points towards the light blue truck in the driveway. "My aunt's already late for work." She explains, her eyes looking around.

"You're not crashing Santana." Brittany is suddenly closer. "What do you think I was waiting out here for?" She grins sweetly and Santana can only give her a shrug and a shake of the head. "It's kinda silly for your aunt to take you to school every morning, it's out of her way and I'm already going there." Brittany explains as she walks up to Santana, her cheerleading skirt swaying with every motion. She reaches up and grabs the shorter girl's bag from her shoulder.

"Oh, I see, so you're doing my aunt a favor." Santana smirks, finally finding the power of speech and the will to walk again.

"Of course, I remember what a trouble maker you were when we were kids. Don't want her going to jail for killing you." Brittany teases as she places the girl's bag in the truck for her and winks at Santana who lets out a chuckle. "Besides, it gives us time to catch up on the things we missed." She shrugs one shoulder and hops into the truck.

"You sure are a sweet talker." Santana comments while reaching behind her to grab the seatbelt while Brittany pulls out of the driveway. She side eyes Santana and her outfit for a brief second and she shifts in her seat comfortably.

"You look nice today." Brittany compliments with one of those soft smiles Santana's been getting a lot of.

"Oh…uh…" She looks down, her eyes going over her ensemble for the day, short skirt, knee socks that she knows totally makes her high heeled boots look super awesome and one of those tops that leave nothing to the imagination. "Thanks." Santana shifts in her spot, glances over at Brittany who is sporting her high pony tail and her usual cheerleading attire. "You too." It comes out before she even realizes it and she immediately wishes she didn't have the ability to speak sometimes. The sound of Brittany's laughter is not helping any.

"Well, thanks." Brittany looks down at her cheerleading uniform. "I feel like a cartoon character." She lets out and judging from the silence that takes over the truck she continues. "You know, cause they are always in the same clothes." Santana arches an eyebrow and she grins because even though the two girls haven't spoken or seen each other in years, she can't help but think 'that is such a Brittany thing to say'.

"Very true." She nods at the statement and turns her head forward once again, watching the road before them become the road behind them.

"So, I was thinking." Brittany hums out as she looks both ways before pulling away from a stop sign. "You, me and Quinn should get together or something." She suggests, glancing over at the other girl to gauge her reaction. Santana's eyes flicker around the car, contemplating the idea, and then shrugs at the thought.

"Sure." She concedes with a nod.

"Well, after homecoming, there's this party by Stars Lake." Brittany begins to explain slowly, using one of her hands as she speaks.

"Stars Lake?" Santana snorts out, not at all surprised that this town would have the most lame name for a place that kids hangout.

"Yeah, it's this little place by a lake. It's kind of secluded, it's usually where the squad and the football team have our parties." She moves her head from side to side as she clarifies the type of setting this would be. "I guess you could say it's in the woods. But it's perfect for teenagers, the sheriff doesn't drive by there so there's no cops." Brittany adds and looks over at her passenger.

"Okay, so what happens at _Stars Lake_?" Santana inquires, pretending it's the most exciting thing she's heard of since she's arrived in Knox, and Brittany giggles completely picking up on her friends sarcasm.

"The guys'll probably get beer, the squad is in charge of getting girls there." She rolls her eyes, remembering freshman year when head cheerleader Gina Crofts gave explicit instructions that no ugly girls were allowed to step foot on Stars Lake. "But, they're usually wasted before they even get there to really care. All they want to do is slam beer can against their heads and talk about the game." She waves off the memories of past experiences of post homecoming gatherings.

"Sounds exciting." Santana mutters as she pulls the visor down to check her lip gloss.

"It can be." Brittany lets out as she turns onto the road that will finally lead them directly to school.

"I've got nothing else going on while I'm in town." Santana informs her with amusement and she receives a grin in return. "I guess I can swing by your little party." She shrugs as she flips the visor back to its upright position and before she knows it, they are pulling into the school's parking lot.

"Ugh." Brittany groans which catches the dark haired girl's attention, and she follows the blonde's line of vision.

"Who's that?" Santana asks as she pulls her bag into her lap while Brittany parks in a spot.

"Hey Pierce!" The deep voice enters her ears before she can hear the name on Brittany's lips. But her eyes fix quickly onto the name that is embroidered onto his letterman jacket.

"Hey Finn." Brittany greets with faux excitement. Finn's eyes flicker over towards the girl coming out of Brittany's truck, but she holds his attention for only a few seconds.

"Thought the squad was going to meet up with the team last night for breakfast dinner." He wonders, bringing a hand up to the girl's bare shoulder, caressing it with his rough hands. Santana's eyes narrow as she stares the boy down, she's pretty sure Brittany and or Quinn would have mentioned something about Brittany and Finn being some sort of an item.

"Yeah, about that," Brittany shrugs the boys hand off her and takes a step to the side and back. "I had to work on Kurt's truck so… I called the girl's and cancelled." She explains in that soft an innocent voice, tilting her head to the side for the extra cuteness factor. "And I mean, he's the Sheriff's son so, I couldn't say no." She adds, bringing up the cops always does the trick no matter what the situation. Finn's eyes widen and he nods his head up and down as he shoves his hands into the pockets of his jacket. He glances over towards Santana who is slowly walking around the front of Brittany's truck.

"Who's she?" He asks, not even lowering his voice politely.

"Oh," Brittany looks over to find Santana making her way over and pulls the girl closer quickly. "This is Santana, she's Miss Linda's niece." She beams over at the shorter girl who smiles back regardless of trying not to. "She used to visit in the summer, do you remember her?" Brittany glances back at Finn who seems to remember, but only shakes his head and looks over his shoulder at some of his football buddies.

"Nah." He points behind him and jerks his head in the same direction. "Gotta go. I'll catch ya at lunch." He waves to both girls and then lightly jogs over to other jocks standing under a leafless tree.

"He totally remembers you." Brittany mumbles, a small smirk on her lips.

"How could he forget? I totally kicked his ass." Santana reminds them both, and they giggle at the memory.

"Hey, I have to go talk to my cheer coach, but…" She nervously bites her lip, somehow feeling as though it's the end of summer and she isn't going to see Santana again for a while.

"I'll see you later Britt." Santana smiles, relieving the other girl of sudden stress.

"Yeah, see you later." And she watches the blonde cheerleader head off in the direction of the field house that is connected to the gym on the other side of school.

* * *

><p>She can't figure out why she is trekking it all the way out to Pierce Parts. Well, she kind of does but at the same time she doesn't know why she is going through the trouble, it's all rather exhausting. But truth be told she doesn't know a lot of people out here in the middle of nowhere and she would have stopped by Quinn's but Judy Fabray was all kinds of weird when they were kids and she can't imagine that living in a small town like this would change that much.<p>

So here she is, on her way to Pierce Parts because, well, Brittany wasn't at home and this is the only place she can think of to find the little blonde, cheerleading, grease monkey. And it really wouldn't be all that bad, the trip up to Pierce Parts garage but she's riding a bicycle. Like who even does that anymore? For some reason or another Aunt Linda wouldn't let her take the truck and so now she's cruising on a Huffy ten speed that she's pretty sure was hers when she was twelve years old.

When she finally pulls up to the garage she sees that it's pretty empty, which she figures makes sense for a Saturday afternoon, except for Brittany's truck parked right outside the open garage door. She comes to a stop and brings her feet to the ground, still straddling the ten speed and twists her lips in thought. She and Brittany have had few interactions, maybe more than a few, but it's still a little weird and like she is getting to know the girl all over again. For a moment she considers turning her bike around and heading back to Aunt Linda's, but then what was the point of driving through Main Street and embarrassing herself on this hot pink bike.

So she sucks it up and lets the bike fall to the ground and makes her way through the open garage door. As soon as she gets inside she spots the girl she came to see, standing at a tool box looking from one hand to the other each holding a different piece of metal. Brittany hasn't spotted her yet or sensed her presence and goes on about her business, chucking one of the tools into the box and heads to the front of the truck. Santana watches the girl stop, bob her head a few times and then spin in a perfect circle, in place three times.

Santana's quirks an eyebrow and looks on when Brittany's body stops and she stomps her foot while running her fingers through her hair. She can't help the small chuckle that comes out and she tries to cover her mouth before it leaves but it's to no avail.

"Hey." Brittany says excitedly when she looks up and finds Santana standing a few feet away from the garage door. Santana gives her a nod and a quarter of a half a smile.

"What are you doing?" She asks curiously, moving from her spot and closer to the other girl. Brittany shrugs her shoulders and tosses the other tool back into the box and walks towards Santana.

"Dancing." She simply replies and Santana smirks.

"Spinning in a circle and stomping your foot, hmm, is that what the kids are doing these days." She bites back in a playful sarcastic kind of way. Brittany tilts her head and eyes Santana.

"Okay then, show me some big city moves." She challenges putting her hands on her hips and Santana sighs, rolls her eyes and shakes her head.

"I don't think you can handle my moves." She bites the inside of her cheek at how lame she sounds, like a horrid pick up line some nerdy guy would use in one of those 80's movies. She still can't comprehend what it is about Brittany that makes her lose her words and stammer like an idiot about nothing. But as usual , Brittany simply giggles, smiles and stares at her.

"I think I can handle anything you throw my way tough guy." Brittany shoots back, confidence etched all over her face. But Santana is not giving in to this and she once again shakes her head.

"Nah I'm good, but please don't let that stop you from… expressing yourself?" The cheerleader eyes her carefully.

"Oh my god!" Brittany gasps with a smile she can hardly hide and brings her hands up to cover her mouth, more for dramatic effect than anything else. Santana's eyes widen self consciously and flicker to the side. A small giggle bursts from the Brittany's lips and her hands fall from her mouth and cross over each other at her chest and she tilts her head. "You don't know how to dance." Brittany says sweetly and softly, her smile and eyes giving off that 'aw' type feeling. Santana jerks her head back and scoffs.

"Please, _I _can dance." She replies quickly and confidently then waves her hand in the air for emphasis while rolling her eyes. Brittany smirks, setting her head straight and her hands moving from her chest to her pockets.

"So, show me." She takes one step forward to nudge Santana's shoulder with her hand quickly and then steps back to her original spot. Santana looks around the nearly empty garage bewildered and embarrassed.

"Here? Now?" Santana quirks an eyebrow at the other girl, who can only continue to smile brightly as she nods at the questions. "That's… kinda weird and stripperish." Brittany lets out a hearty laugh and playfully rolls her eyes.

"Oh come on, it's fun to just let loose and dance it out." She announces loudly, her voice echoing throughout the nearly empty garage. When Santana doesn't laugh, smile or even make a single move Brittany stops moving and crosses her arms giving Santana a good hard look. "You used to dance with me." She reminds the dark haired girl. When they were little girls and preteens most of their summer days were spent dancing in the sun under a sprinkler. "Hmm, you were a lot less uptight back then though." She shrugs her shoulders and walks over towards the open door to the passenger side of the truck she'd been working on. Santana's eyebrows furrow and her jaw hangs open as she watches the blonde lean over to the radio playing with the dials, a quiet static coming from the speakers.

"What?" Santana asks incredulously, her arms going into their normal position, pulled tightly across her chest. Brittany looks over her shoulder with a smirk and looks the other girl up and down, a small chuckle escaping her lips.

"Look at you Santana." She moves herself from the slightly torn leather seat of the pickup truck and turns fully around the face the other girl. Her finger points at Santana and she moves it up and down the length of her friend. "You're so closed off and… uptight." She repeats because it's really the only word she can think of to really explain this new Santana, the one she is getting to know. "You need to loosen up!" She cheers and shimmies the top of her body from side to side giggling as she finishes and she winks when she gets a small smile from Santana. "You need to shake what your mama gave ya!" She lifts her arms above her head and shakes her hips slowly which garners a bigger, not huge, smile out of her friend. "See, that's the girl I know!" She points at Santana's smile, matching it with her own and Santana rolls her eyes at the other girl's antics.

"You are like…" Santana breathes out, a small laugh stuck in the back of her throat and she shakes her head. "Exactly the same." Bright blue eyes meet dark brown ones questioningly but also with elation. Then Santana smirks and adds, "Almost." They stand there for a few more seconds looking at each other, grinning, while Santana shifts from side to side feeling fidgety under Brittany's stare.

Without saying another word Brittany turns back towards the truck, leaning onto the weathered leather seat and plays with the knobs of the radio once again. The beginnings notes of a familiar song to both girls' emanates from the speakers of the truck and Santana can hear Brittany squeal with delight and she turns the volume louder until it's bouncing off of the dirty white walls of the garage at Pierce Parts.

She jumps out of the truck, smiling from ear to ear and slowly moving towards Santana with some pretty old dance moves that the latter is sure were made illegal after the awful decade that was the 80's. Brittany's hands come up in the air as she moves and her index fingers poke out and curve to beckon the shorter girl to come towards her. Santana shakes her head, waving her hands in front of her in way of saying 'no' but can't her laughter seeing that Brittany is not giving up.

And that's when Brittany starts mouthing the words the ever still a classic 'A Little Respect' by Erasure, a group Santana is certain were a complete one hit wonder and that's it. But this does not stop the blonde from serenading Santana via lip-synch and gnarly dance moves. And after the first verse of 'that you give me no' Brittany is right in front of her placing her hands on Santana's hips and moving them from side to side trying to get her to 'let loose' as she has been preaching.

Santana allows her to do this to her, trying her hardest to keep her smiling in check, not wanting to give in at all. Or at least not yet. But Brittany does not give up and she reaches up to pull Santana's wrists away from around herself and pull her arms out from being crossed. She's pretty successful but is working with spaghetti arms, Santana not helping her in the least but she moves the tanned arms as she wants and spins herself around a few times with no assistance from Santana herself.

The shorter girl watches the dancer. Her smile has yet to falter, her eyes still sparkle the same way they did when they were kids and she is happy. Legitimately happy and all she's doing is dancing. Santana can't help but feel a little envious about that fact but then again, maybe it will work for her too. So instead of continuing on with letting Brittany make her limbs and hips move like she's a puppet she takes a few steps away towards the toolbox. Brittany watches her curiously, still dancing regardless.

Santana reaches into the toolbox for anything really and she luckily comes up with a screwdriver which she holds the metal end of and spins around using the actual handle as a microphone. Brittany cheers, throwing her head back in laughter and claps. She watches Santana sing the words the song that brings back memories for the both of them, of the both of them and she's not holding back. Santana is throwing in her own corny dance moves and it's now her turn to call Brittany over and she quickly obliges, reaching in the toolbox for her own makeshift microphone.

She spins around in a few circles until finally throwing her arm around Santana's neck and gripping her shoulder as they move side to side and sing 'don't you tell me no' together into their screwdrivers. Santana reaches up and grabs Brittany's hand, steps back and spins her so they are dancing together. Brittany mouths 'I'm so in love with you' and grips Santana's hand a little harder than before and with her hand holding the screwdriver she points her index finger out and runs it down her face as she mouths 'I'll be forever blue'.

Santana smirks as Brittany moves her hips and motioning for her to do the same and when she does the other girl beams up at her while still mouthing the words to the song. Finally letting it all go Santana throws her head back, mouthing the higher pitched words like they are actually coming from her and this gets the blonde to laugh with her.

As the song comes to an end they start busting out some of their favorite dance moves with Brittany pulling out the robot and Santana doing some hip hop step along with the beat. Their laughter egging the other on as they try out each other's moves until the song finally ends and the air is replaced with the voice of the radio DJ. They come to a stop, breathing heavy and grinning at one another like they used to when they were kids.

"That was so much fun." Brittany says through her ragged breathing, Santana simply nods and tosses the screwdriver back into the tool box. "Look at you." She points at Santana's face.

"What?" With an eyebrow quirked, the corners of her lips remained pulled upright.

"You're smiling cause you're happy." Brittany simply states. "I missed that." Santana lets out a throaty chuckle and watches the girl brush by her tossing her screwdriver/microphone back into the toolbox along with her own.

"I've smiled since I've been here." Santana defends, but Brittany just shakes her head.

"This is a different smile. I mean, they're all pretty but," She looks up from what she's doing and finds Santana's eyes for a moment before looking back down. "It's just different."

She _is_ happy and it feels good. Different but good, and a little reminiscent of how she used to be before the drama of growing up came into play. Brittany leans back into the truck to kill the engine and shuts the door as she exits. She comes back to face Santana and nods proudly as though they have just accomplished something that almost seemed impossible. Then, she reaches forward with her hand towards Santana's hanging by her side and hooks their pinkies together.

"And since I made it happen, let's go to Carmel's so you can buy me a shake doll face." Brittany winks and drags Santana out of the garage by her pinky and towards her own truck parked right outside.

It's in this moment that Santana can't help but feel like this was more than just a song and more than just dancing.


	4. Chapter 4

**Who Believed**

_**July, 2005**_

"_Santana?" Brittany breaks the comfortable silence that had fallen over them since the movie started._

"_Hmm?" Santana replies, turning her head towards her friend, her eyes slowly flicker from the television set and over to meet questioning blue ones._

"_You know how in fairytales, the prince is always saving the damsel in distress?" Brittany asks, her voice quiet and unsure. Santana smiles and nods in understanding. "And they fall in love and live happily ever after?" She continues, her nervousness flying right over the other girls head._

"_Of course Britt, that's the whole point of fairytales." She says through a tiny laugh._

"_I was thinkin' the other day how awesome it would be if there was a hero girl instead of a guy hero." Brittany muses, a confident smile now taking over her lips._

"_Like, a princess saving a boy?" Santana questions curiously with a tilt of her head._

"_Maybe." She shrugs her shoulders. "Or, like, two girls." She watches as her words float around Santana's mind. "Do you think it's possible for two girls to fall in love? And live happily ever after, like in fairytales?" Her voice is soft yet hopeful, and Santana contemplates the idea for a few long seconds._

"_My Aunt Lee Lee always says, 'anything is possible if you believe'." She informs her friend with a bright smile, taking note of the blonde's lips twisting and as her head nods once._

"_I believe it's possible." She grins, taking her lower lip between her teeth and nodding approvingly._

"_If you believe, than it's possible." Santana agrees. "If you were a damsel in distress, I would totally save you." She adds as an afterthought. "And then we'd ride off into the sunset." She waves her hand in the air to emphasize her point, letting her eyes drift off to the side as though picturing it play out._

"_On a horse, like in the stories?" Brittany asks, her eyes wide with excitement. Santana turns back to her, nose scrunched up and her eyebrows knit together._

"_I don't know how to ride a horse." She admits, lowering her head as she thinks of other ways to get away. "Maybe we could ride off on my bike." She suggests and this makes Brittany smile, and she hums in delight at the idea._

"_We could call in love?" It almost comes out more as a statement than a question, and Santana smiles a small smile._

_Their attention is brought back to the movie, both sitting comfortably under the blanket they share. Santana can see Brittany grin from the corner of her eyes, so she turns her head to see it fully._

"_What?" She finally asks._

"_Do you really think your Aunt Linda is right," Brittany wonders, letting her gaze fall to the girl beside her. "That anything is possible if you believe?" Santana nods slowly, making Brittany smile wider. "One day," She begins, turning her body to face Santana's. "Our fairytale will start, and then we can live happily ever after." Santana smirks and then after a few moments, she turns towards Brittany, mirroring her friend's position._

"_Our fairytale has already started, B." Santana comments, resting her head against the back of the couch. She sighs out a giggle when Brittany tilts her head in confusion. Then, she lifts her hand up and taps her fingers to her lips, much like Brittany does when she is about to tell a story. "Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, there lived a beautiful blonde princess." She presses at the tip of Brittany's nose, making them both chuckle._

"_And she was always smiling because she was happy, especially when her princess friend came to visit."_

"_Who is also beautiful." Santana adds pointedly, making her friend giggle._

"_And also from a land far, far away." Brittany says, getting a nod from Santana._

"_See," She tells her, and shrugs her shoulders. "It's already started." She shuffles closer until her toes are tucked beneath Brittany's butt._

"_I can't wait." Brittany thinks aloud, a dreamy look in her eye._

"_For what?" Santana asks in a curious whisper. Brittany's smile goes all the way to her eyes that they shimmer and sparkle against the light streaming from the television._

"_To fall in love with you."_

* * *

><p><strong>Something Is Not the Same<strong>

_**October, 2011**_

It's crazy that the sound of silence and the faint chirping of crickets can make sleep difficult to find. Back in Boston, there are cars speeding up and down Tenth Avenue, honking their horns, and the train tracks are barely a half a mile away. The sound of steel grinding and gliding over steel reverberates against the walls of any house within a two mile radius. But, those are things Santana has grown accustomed to, those are things that let her know she's home.

Knox City, Texas, way out by the old farmhouses and the invisible barriers off dirt roads where Aunt Linda resides, is anything but living the 'city life'. It's dusty, sweltering, muggy and worst of all, bugs seem to love it. There are no noises off in the distance to comfort a girl plucked from her glamorous life of noise pollution, blaring horns and the loud, yelling voices of the Thompson's from down the block.

The sound of the random truck cruising over the dirt of the south service road could provide comfort to a city girl like Santana in the way the radio of Phil's Pizza from around the block could, even when it played as early as eight in the morning as they prepared to open at eleven. There are no cars or trucks really even driving up and down the south service road and even if there are, they don't have their radios blasting to the newest club song or even the top forty.

The only people driving up and down the south service road are Aunt Linda and the few neighbors this road has actually got. No one even uses the south service road because it's still mainly dirt, where as the parkway is nice and paved. The difference between the two only reminds Santana of how deep in the middle of nowhere she actually is.

Only adding to her night of a restless night, or more appropriately, no sleep at all, she has her second meeting with the town's social worker. Last week, the ginger haired woman spent the majority of their hour together reading over Santana's file as the teenager sat across from her filing her nails. All in all, Santana deemed it a productive session, where as Miss Pillsbury mentioned that they had much to discuss today. Actually, Santana is pretty sure the young woman hadn't even finished reading her files, considering there was a huge stack of papers that looked completely untouched.

But, first there's school.

It's been going, slowly, but going. Quinn has been very welcoming, and although Santana doesn't see the point in putting forth the effort of developing one of those 'deep and long lasting friendships', she'll pretty much take what she can get while she's here. It's not really taking advantage of her kindness, in fact, the way she looks at it as she is doing the girl a favor. According to her observations, Quinn isn't exactly Knox High's most loved peer, to which she can only assume as always has something to do with the pregnancy circa 2009.

But, with being a bit broody and anti everyone else, Santana finds it only fitting that the two have formed a bond. They share a few classes together, eat lunch together and every now and again they do something outside of school. In fact, Quinn has even gotten Santana to become a regular fixture at the football games every Friday night. Even the away ones. She reasons that it gives her something to do rather than sit at Aunt Linda's and piss and moan about her life here. Plus, Aunt Linda is making her go to the games, so she really doesn't have a say in the matter anyway.

Outfit perfect, makeup flawless and hair amazing, Santana makes her way out to the kitchen to grab herself a glass of juice. She easily tunes out the sound of the phone ringing, mainly because she never answers it regardless. Also, it's never for her. But, today is different because she hears her aunt say 'she's right here', which peaks her interest. Obviously her thoughts go to Miss Pillsbury, assuming the over attentive lady is calling to remind her of their weekly meeting today. As if she could forget. The word 'social worker' sing-songs itself in her mind since the woman first visited.

"Santana," Aunt Linda peeks her head around the corner from where the phone is connect on the wall, and the teenager only rolls her eyes wondering when her aunt is going to finally get a cordless. "It's your mother." To say she's surprised would be an understatement. She hasn't heard a thing from either one of her parents since her arrival in this stupid dust bowl and now, as if only adding to her Wednesday 'day of agony', her mother decides to drop a line.

With a huff, she shuts the refrigerator door and stalks over to where Aunt Linda is standing, holding the phone out for her niece. The heels of her knee high suede boots clicking and clacking against the old wooden floor of the hallway. She eyes the receiver with disdain, not prepared to hear the way her mother is going to ask her how things are going and how she's been and if she's made any friends yet. When she finally takes the phone from Aunt Linda's hand, she stares at it for a while, as though observing the way the phone from 1987 is discolored and cheap. It's a pale blue, which is reminiscent of the powder blue pick-up truck the girl next door drives. Even the cracks by the mouth piece remind her more of the truck, how it has it's worn in look like it's been driven through storms during nightly rides where you turn the radio on full volume and just think for hours on end.

Shaking herself from her tangent of thoughts, she raises the phone up higher, almost like she is staring her mother in the face. Then, without a bat of an eyelash, she roughly puts the phone on the wall, hanging up on her mother without a 'hello' or a 'goodbye'. Aunt Linda gasps and stares at her niece with wide eyes.

"What'd you do that for?" The woman asks, slightly peeved but more so concerned. Her gaze flickers from the phone and to the girl beside it a few times before putting her hands on her hips in that very authoritarian way those adults do. Santana shrugs her shoulders and turns back towards the kitchen to get herself that glass of juice.

"I have nothing to say to her." She explains simply enough, pulling the orange juice container out and sets it up on the counter as she grabs a glass.

"She's your mother." Aunt Linda says from the doorway of the kitchen, obviously having followed the moody teenager.

"Yeah," Santana scoffs. "And?" She glances over her shoulder as she takes a quick sip of her drink and sending her aunt an arched eyebrow, showing her lack of concern in the statement.

"So, you're just not going to speak to her the whole time you're here? Is that it?" Aunt Linda asks, her head shakes side to side in clear disapproval. Santana spins around, shutting the refrigerator door with her hip and finishes her juice.

"Sounds about right." Santana sighs and puts her dirty glass into the sink before heading towards the chair where her bag lies.

"Santana." The older woman sighs, her hands fall from her hips and loosely wrap themselves around her middle.

"Look Aunt Lee," Santana interrupts a probably long speech that is coming her way. "Let's not pretend that they really care about how things are going here." She gives her aunt a pointed look as she leans down to grab her school things and personal belongings. "You and I both know they are only 'checking in' because it's like, in some parental handbook or whatever." She rolls her eyes, tossing the strap of her big purse over her shoulder, letting her thumb settle comfortably under it. "_You_ can talk to them if they really _need _to know. I'm going to school, doing my time." She shrugs, her eyes flicker towards the door when she hears the tell tale sign of Brittany being out front waiting for her. "I'll see you later." Her head shakes and brushes by her aunt to make her way outside to the powder blue pick-up truck waiting in the driveway.

It's always been hard for her to put into words the exact nature of her relationship with her parents. Probably because there _is _no relationship. The only thing that she knows is that once upon a time, her parents had sex, got pregnant, and boom here she is. She learned that much in biology and it doesn't really take a scientist to figure out her parents did the deed, at least twice that she knows of.

"Mornin'." Brittany greets with a wide smile when the door opens. Santana forces a smile on her face but doesn't meet those blue eyes. She nods as she shimmies herself onto the worn in leather of the bench that is the front seat of the truck.

"Hey." Santana replies quietly, situating her books on her lap and her bag in the space between her and the cheerleader. Brittany eyes the other girl up for a little before she pulls out of the driveway, but when the shorter girl doesn't seem to even blink in her direction, she just rides away in silence, at least for a few minutes.

"Everything okay?" She tentatively asks, shooting the other girl a concerned look. Santana rolls her eyes and chuckles, and she stares out the window as the scenery of her present hell flies by them.

"Peachy." Santana answers dryly. Brittany's lips twist in thought, she's never really had to deal with a brooding person before. When they were younger, Santana was a lot happier, she smiled and laughed as much as anyone else Brittany knew. Sure, she was a bit abrasive when they were younger as well, but it was all in jest. For the most part.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" The cheerleader presses, her hands smoothing over the rough material of her steering wheel as she comes to a full stop at a stop sign.

"Not really." Santana hums out, her eyes still focused on the window that she notices is covered in a light layer of dust and dirt. Brittany nods, unsure if she should let the other girl get away with being so shut off, but inevitably she decides against asking for her to open up and that she will do it on her own terms.

"So," Brittany sighs out. "Are you gonna be at the Homecoming game Friday?" She asks, sending a sparkling smile over in her friend's direction, and all Santana can do is huff out a chuckle and roll her eyes. She can't quite figure out how the other girl has this uncanny ability to make her forget about her troubles so quickly and easily. "Come on, you have to come." Brittany practically whines, pouting and giving Santana puppy dog eyes.

"Oh no." Santana lifts her hand and points her finger at Brittany. "Do _not _even think about giving me…" But she stops talking when the cheerleader lets out the tiniest whimper, blinking so sadly at her. Santana sighs, lowers her hand to her lap and shakes her head to herself. "_Fine_." She huffs, trying her hardest to hide the smirk that's slowly creeping on her lips. "Not like I had other plans anyway." She reasons, as though it makes it okay for her to suddenly become a permanent fixture for 'Friday night lights'.

"Yay!" Brittany cheers, throwing in a quick clap to emphasize her excitement. "I think you're starting to like it here." She suggests, only to have Santana scoff at her comment.

"I wouldn't hold your breath." Santana mutters to herself.

When they pull into a spot in the student parking lot at school, Santana's passenger door is already open before Brittany can shut off the engine. She just watches as her passenger gathers her things and steps out, closes the door and politely waits around the back of the truck. Brittany smirks to herself, because in spite of this bravado Santana is trying her best to exude, she clearly still needs someone… anyone.

"Do you…" Brittany starts to speak as she rounds the back of the truck but her voice falls short when the sound of a guy's voice interrupts.

"Pierce!" It's the unmistakable, throaty call of one Finn Hudson and he is making his way over towards her. He spares a quick glance at Santana who only stares him down with utter annoyance, especially when he completely invades Brittany's personal space by throwing his arm over her shoulder. "I was thinking that since _we_ are going to be homecoming King and Queen, that you could get your dad to score us a hot ride for the game Friday." He says in an all too hopeful voice. Brittany raises a questioning eyebrow as she tries to subtlely shake him from her, only to fail seeing as he pulls her harder against him.

"I think that he's already agreed to donate like three cars, for the night anyway." She informs him, looking briefly away and over at Santana who is still staring Finn down.

"Sweet, what are we riding in?" The football oaf asks with an unattractive child like excitement. Brittany once more uncomfortably shrugs her shoulders, trying to step away from under his heavy arm when her thoughts are interrupted by Santana's voice.

"I think I see Quinn." She points over in the distance, finally catching blue eyes. "I'm just gonna…" Her voice trails off as she leaves the All-American girl and boy to do whatever it is that is going on between them.

"So, Quinn's _finally_ got a new friend." Finn muses, glancing over his shoulder at Santana's retreating form, letting his eyes fall down to her more accentuated assets for a moment. Brittany finally presses her hand into his shoulder, pushing him away from her and rolls her eyes. "It's about time." He chuckles to himself, turning back to face Brittany after she's finally extracted herself from him.

"Yeah, no thanks to you." Brittany mumbles, but the harshness in her voice and even her words go in one ear and out the other.

"I'm just sayin'," He continues, oblivious to the sour mood he's put the head cheerleader in, and he looks over his shoulder at where Quinn and current 'new girl' are standing. "Hanging out with her cousin for the past two years wasn't doing anything for her social status." He comments, bringing his hands up to where his letterman jacket opens and he tugs on it to straighten it out. "Not that I'm sure _that _girl's gonna help much." He snorts, finding himself rather funny.

"I'll see you later Finn." Is all Brittany says before walking away from him and heading over towards a group of her fellow cheerleaders. She does however, spare a glance over in the direction of Quinn and Santana, wishing that it were her over there with them instead of her being over here with a group of girl's that don't really know her. "Hey girls." She slaps on a smile as she greets her teammates, taking a seat on one of the benches ready to talk strategy for their upcoming cheerleading competition next month.

Over on the other side of the lawn, Santana stands awkwardly with her books in her hands, she had obviously interrupted an important how to on skin care between Quinn and her cousin. She watches the way the boy's hands flail and the limp in his wrist as he continues to inform his cousin on the difference between moisturizer and lotion. When his rant looks like it's coming to a close, Quinn looks over in Santana's direction and playfully rolls her eyes at how fast her cousin talks, especially when it comes to skin maintenance.

"Thank you Kurt, for that in depth analysis of aloe based topical." Quinn jokes, getting a sarcastic chuckle from the boy, who abruptly frowns as he adjusts the bag on his shoulder. "Sorry 'bout that." She says to Santana, nodding in the direction of her cousin. "He gets very excited about cosmetics." Santana raises a curious eyebrow and lets her eyes fall onto the boy before her. Of course it's obvious that this kid is a flaming homosexual, her gaydar went off before she even heard him speak.

"Yeah." Santana drawls out, nodding slowly as she not so secretly eyes up the boys attire. For a second she wonders if this kid considered going to a private school, because there was way too many fashionista situations going on in his ensemble. She's sure RuPaul would definitely have something to say. "You're the kid who always made us have tea parties whenever you came by." She recalls, remembering how familiar this boy looked. Quinn stifles a laugh when Kurt looks over at her.

"They were _high noon_ tea parties." He clarifies, receiving an eye roll from both girls.

"So, like," Her head tilts to the side and she purses her lips for a moment. "You're gay, right?" She asks, her voice a little lower, because truth be told, sometimes even the most flamboyant of gays are ironically not out of the closet. Kurt gives her a perplexed look, his eyebrows knit and he sends his cousin an amused glance.

"Actually, my name's Kurt." He playfully lets out, extending his hand to the girl before him and giggles out something definitely not manly and Quinn follows suit.

"Sorry for the lack of introductions." She smiles at Santana and motions for her to shake Kurt's hand, which she does after a few long seconds. "Santana this is my cousin Kurt, Kurt this is Santana." She points from one to the other. "And yes, he was the desperate _high noon_ tea party thrower." Quinn adds as Santana quickly removes her hand from Kurt's.

"But yes, as for your question. I am gay." He answers, and then lifts his hand as though to cover his mouth ready to reveal a secret. "But don't tell my boyfriend." He sends Santana a wink, finally knocking her back to reality. She sighs out a chuckle and shakes her head.

"I just…" She swallows, looks down at her shoes, inwardly reminding herself to stop wearing these while she's in this town because they are full of dirt. "I didn't mean to…" Kurt places a hand on her shoulder and shakes his head, smiling the whole time.

"It's fine." He assures her, and gets a nod from Quinn as well.

"He came out like, two years ago." She waves off the apology. Santana nods and suddenly relaxes from the fear of just having put someone on the spot. Though she's never had to deal with actually being outed, she can only imagine the horror of it all.

"Does your boyfriend go here?" Santana asks, trying to stay positive on the subject matter, wanting to make it as clear as day that this information does nothing to affect her at all. Kurt's hand falls from her shoulder and he fixes the strap of his bag once again and sends his cousin a small half smile.

"Actually, I don't have a boyfriend." He admits and there is sadness laced in his voice. "It's kind of hard to meet anybody out here." He shrugs his shoulders and looks over to the boys in letterman jackets who are tossing footballs around and laughing.

"All the guys here are jackasses anyway." Quinn comments, following her cousins gaze. "Trust me you're not missing out." She rubs his back comfortingly and they share a brief smile.

"Even if they weren't though," Kurt continues, bringing his focus back to the new girl standing in front of him. "It's not like Knox is the easiest place to be out and proud." He rolls his eyes at the dismay that is his life. Santana nods, looks over her shoulder at the meat heads that 'run' this school and fixes her bag.

"Yeah, well, it's not just here." She states matter of factly, tucking a few stray hairs behind her ear and bites her lip for a few moments. "It's hard wherever you are." She explains in a softer than usually voice, finally turning back to face the two other teenagers, who are staring at her in confusion.

"Sure, but I bet that in a big city, it's a little easier to be out." Quinn reasons, her eyes flickering from Santana and her Kurt, both she and her cousin staring on as the dark haired girl mulls over her words.

"Not really, I mean," Santana starts, shifts her weight from foot to foot and clears her throat before she continues. "It's not so much, I guess, what the world thinks of you." She begins to explain, finding it hard to tear her eyes from the two pairs staring back at her. "But the fear of how the ones closest to you will think of you." Those visions she'd had of disappointment in her mother's eyes clouding her mind for a few seconds, before she shakes them out of her thoughts.

The bell rings before Quinn or Kurt can respond and the three of them head towards the double doors of Knox City High School. The girl's say their farewells to Kurt at the hallway before their lockers, making plans to see him during lunch. The two remain quiet as they exchange their books and even when they walk to their first class. Quinn is busy going through her notes trying to find her homework, while Santana stares idly out the window.

Her mind wanders over to Kurt and she can't fight the feeling that being a gay teenage boy here in Knox has been anything short of a smooth ride. She's pretty certain that those football guys probably hassle him more often than not and deep in her gut it stings. Because even though it's nothing done to her, she can feel the shame and guilt that Kurt probably felt when he was being bullied. She wonders if he is still bullied. If only he had someone here to help him, to be out with him to show he is not different and not alone.

Her pen cap seems to find itself between her teeth at some point in her thoughts, and she glances from the window to the clock on the wall above the door. First period English is nearly over and she has not listened to one single thing the teacher has been preaching about. Turning in her chair, she faces Quinn who sits beside her and she taps her finger tips on her desk to get her attention.

"Hey." She whispers out when Quinn continues to zone out at the blank sheet of paper in front of her. So she knocks on the desk a little more forcefully. "Quinn." She says louder, finally getting the cheerleaders attention and the girl leans over towards Santana. "Back home, we used to drive like an hour and a half just to go to this bar." She starts and flickers her eyes to the teacher to make sure she's not paying attention to the disruption in the back of the classroom. "Places like that usually don't care about high school kids going, just cause, well…" She shrugs her shoulders, not quite sure how to explain.

"What?" Quinn breathes out, confusion written as clear as day all over her face and Santana sighs out in frustration.

"Kurt." She says simply. "Doesn't he have places to, like, go to? Ya know, so he can be himself?" Santana clarifies, finally getting an understanding nod and an 'oh' from Quinn. In all honesty, Kurt is probably the furthest thing from her mind and what she is actually banking on, is the info on some place that she can finally get her party on.

"Yeah." Quinn smiles, also letting her gaze fall to the front of the room for a moment and then leans a little closer to Santana so she doesn't have to speak so loud. "It's just out of Knox, on the border of Carter." She informs Santana whose smile only begins to grow, making her eyes sparkle. "It's a small bar called 'April's Rhodehouse'." Quinn tells her, watching the expression of excitement and intrigue form over Santana's features.

"Well, we should totally go." Santana says with a nod before leaning back into her desk comfortably, her eyes fixed on her notebook as she scrawls 'April's Rhodehouse' on a blank sheet of loose leaf. Even if Quinn isn't down to go, she sure as hell is going to trek her ass down to some hole in the wall, pro-lady lovin' place.

"Really?" Quinn asks, hopefulness ever clear in her voice. Santana smiles over at her friend, delighted she has peaked some interest in the blonde, taps her pen to her notebook and then leans over once again. "I mean, usually it's just me and Kurt." She explains with a shrug, and the dark haired girl finds herself rather impressed with the cheerleader.

"Well, _of course_ I wanna go." Santana replies without hesitation and with a straight face. "I mean, Kurt obviously _needs_ to get some action." She informs the other girl who giggles at her statement. "And besides, if I'm going to survive living here, I_ seriously_ needs to get my mack on." She shrugs and rests her back into the seat once again. Quinn's jaw drops and she stares on as Santana continues to doodle in her notebook.

"Wait," Quinn breathes out, glances around her and then leans closer to Santana, nearly resting her arm on her desk. "So, you _are_ gay?"

Before Santana can speak through her smirk, the bell rings and the hustle and bustle of the classroom breaks Quinn from her thoughts and she gets up from her seat. She gathers her books together and tosses the dark haired girl a nod and one of her signature soft smiles.

"I won't tell anyone." Quinn tells her as they head to the front of the classroom, her fingers pulling at the corner of her English textbook. Santana shrugs her shoulder that her bag is uncomfortably digging into and glares at some kid who bumps into her.

"Uh," She lets out, awkwardly drifting her gaze to the door and away from the inquisitive hazel eyes. "Actually, it's really not a secret." Santana offers, a tentative smile forming on her lips and in that moment as those words leave her mouth she feels a bit lighter. Quinn practically beams before she spins around, her cheer skirt lifting ever so slightly with the force and the wind from her movement. "But," She reaches out to grab at Quinn's elbow to pull her closer, eyes dart around at the stragglers bumping into them. "It's not like I am telling you to go on the loud speaker for an announcement about it." She clarifies, because even though it feels great to tell yet another person about herself, she's not about to join in on the Pride Parade in Main Street, not that she would mind the attention.

"It's not anyone's business." Quinn assures her, sincerity shining through her eyes and Santana nods in understanding. "And I didn't mean to pry," Suddenly feeling that overwhelming feeling she believes Santana must have felt earlier when she asked Kurt if he was gay. "It's just," She chuckles and rolls her eyes as they finally start walk out of the classroom and into the busy hall of Knox High. "Hanging around Kurt all the time, I guess I picked up on some things." She laughs, nervously glancing over at the way Santana smirks at her words.

"Gaydar's a good thing." Santana nudges her shoulder into Quinn's, finally getting her friend to settle and relax. "For you I mean, just means you'll be better equipped to be my wing woman." She jokes, getting a raised eyebrow from the Quinn, probably wondering when this new big city Santana found the time to make a funny.

"I'll see you after class." Quinn turns to walk across the hallway to her history class, leaving Santana to stand alone in front of her Spanish classroom.

She watches as the crowd thins, teachers yelling at some of the football players 'rough housing' by the lockers and trying to get them into the classroom. Quinn's already gone, in her seat, she can see this much from her spot in the deserted hallway and she wonders if she's going to continue down this new path of opening up. Her 'friendships' in the Heights consists of doing pretty much anything and everything illegal, with Puck at her side and authority hot on their tails.

In a way, she feels as though she's entered some time machine, traveling all the way back to those years she missed during her parent's divorce. Quinn's almost the same, safe for the baby that left her kind of emotionally distant and sarcastic. And Brittany, well, then there's Brittany. The girl is the same, for the most part of course. The years have been good to the head cheerleader, Santana is no slouch in noticing those long, toned legs of hers and the way her uniform fits her in all the right ways that would make any red blooded American think all the wrong things.

* * *

><p>The unfortunate part about Wednesdays is that instead of wandering around the town to bide her time until her blonde friends are free from cheer practice, she has to head straight over towards Miss Pillsbury's office on Charles. It's down the street from the church and she can't help but think it's a ploy against her from the so-called 'Big Man Upstairs' to try and make her change and become that 'good citizen'.<p>

Miss Pillsbury's office is actually connected to a bigger building that holds a lot of other offices, such as the dentist, general physician and other various doctors' offices. And an even more unfortunate fact, is that it is right across from the Knox City Town Hall building where she is always spotting the big wigs of the town gathering for important meetings for, like, a new tractor trailer or something that is imperative in this stupid Podunk town.

From just across Charles Avenue, where the Knox City Town Hall building is, on the bottom step just before the giant glass doors that read 'Knox City Council', is a woman. She stands there still, like a statue, and any random passer buyer would assume from her pose she was nothing but cold. However, the people of Knox know better than to put such a label on a woman like Annie Pierce, and instead of saying those things about her out loud, they merely think them in their own minds.

Annie Pierce stands with her arms crossed over her chest, loose and comfortable, but powerful. Her aged, yet oddly vibrant blonde hair is pulled up much like it is on Sunday's for church, but today it's a bit more businesslike. Her knee length pencil skirt is the same pattern as her fitted blazer, something big city types refer to as a 'power suit', and she tops off her elegant look with eyewear very similar to that of the late Jackie O. The only visible sign that she is not in fact a statue of the prominent Mrs. Pierce, is the movement of an arched eyebrow, just seen above the dark, large lenses of her sun glasses.

Carefully, she raises one of her hands up to her glasses, bringing her finger just to the bridge of her accessory and lowers them, enabling her to view the street without the dimness her glasses provide. She watches as the girl from next door walks her way into the Knox HealthCare building, unable to help her mind from wandering to various possibilities of her need for such a place. In fact, it was just last week she had seen the young girl going into the very same building, at this very time, on this very day.

"Mayor." The older woman hears from behind her, and at first she pays no mind to the voice of her assistant bustling with papers a few feet behind her, only to continue to stare until the dark haired girl is no longer visible. "Mayor Pierce." Is called out again and the woman twirls her body around, pushing her glasses up as she does so, only to find her assistant, Terri Del Monaco right behind her holding a bunch of files with papers nearly falling out of them. "The meeting is about to start." She informs her boss, who smiles condescendingly at the woman and nods before brushing by her and up the steps.

As Santana hoists her purse at a better position on her shoulder, she walks the steps to the front doors of the Knox HealthCare Building and groans as she makes her way to the elevator. The sound of the elevator slowly creeping down makes her consider taking the stairs, but Miss Pillsbury's office is all the way up on the third floor and she is most definitely not wearing the proper attire for that kind of hiking experience. So, instead, she waits for the elevator to arrive, making her cringe as the doors crackle as they open. She can't help but wonder is she just about to enter some sort of hell cage that will plummet her to her death, and for a moment, it truly sounds appetizing.

The hallway just outside Miss Pillsbury's office smells like Lysol and those air freshener trees the poor kids at her prep school back home put in their lockers. The walls have an ugly off white wallpaper that she is sure is up in every building here in Knox and the carpet is a faded forest green that is oddly very clean.

She doesn't knock before she opens the door, because all this door separates is Miss Pillsbury's assistant's part of the office and the hallway. The woman at the desk nods kindly, sending Santana a smile before telling her that Miss Pillsbury is ready for her, and that she should just go inside.

"Santana." Emma greets, a tentative smile being offered from behind her desk, and she watches as the teenager shuts the door and stalks over to the chair. "How was school?" She asks politely, settling her hands onto her desk while Santana drops her bag and books down at her feet.

"Can we just get this over with?" Santana blurts out, reaching down to grab her nail file from her purse. Emma tightens her lips, sighs through her nose and glances down at the opened files laid out on her desk.

"Very well." The older woman nods, pushing a few papers to spread them out and get a better look. "Last week we didn't get to talk much." She reminds the girl, who only flickers a quick glance in her direction with a quirked eyebrow.

"That's because _one_ of us was _unprepared_." Santana replies sharply, motioning with her nail file at the mess of papers on the other woman's desk. "I take it you've read your literature this week Miss P?" She tilts her head and smirks at the ginger haired woman, who only furrows her brow at the dark haired girl in disappointment.

"Santana," Emma starts, but then lets out a long sigh and her shoulders drop, because she actually _doesn't_ know where to begin. "Is there anything you can tell me about all of this?" She asks, leaning her chin in her hand and points down to the papers with the pen she's picked up. Santana pauses from her vigilant filing and stares down at the manila folders and assortment of colored paper cluttering the social worker's desk.

"Sorry?" Santana says dryly, staring blankly back at the woman whose eyes only widen, if that's even possible. "Look Miss P," She shifts in her seat and crosses her left leg over her right knee and places her hands in her lap. "I'm pretty sure that most of that," She points to the mess of pink, blue, yellow and white pages. "Is complete bullshit." She spits out defensively. "I'm innocent." She shakes her head, eyes lowering back down to the hands she lifts up to get back to her filing.

"This isn't a joke Santana." Miss Pillsbury tells her, bringing both of her hands flat down to her desk onto the police reports, court files and other various sheets of paper from her prep school.

"No, it is not." Santana chuckles with faux amusement as she shakes her head. "Let me paint you a picture." She lowers her hands back down to her lap and smiles placating back at the doe eyed woman behind the desk. "I was sent here because my 'loving' father couldn't pull some strings like he usually does." She shrugs her shoulders and lowers her eyes. "Guess he got tired of bailing me out or that he's just a loser who doesn't care." Her voice is lower, but she shakes herself out of this little 'woe is me' moment. "So instead of spending six months stuck in my house with some lame ass and tacky looking little anklet that I very well could have made a new style, I'm sitting _here_," She slumps into her chair and crosses her arms over her chest as she eyes up Miss Pillsbury. "With you, in this sweaty town, where everything is trucks and football." Her eyes roll at the very picture that is her life currently. "And I'm _stuck_ with my aunt!" She huffs in frustration.

"She's a nice lady." Emma responds instantly and Santana gives her an incredulous look.

"She's unreasonable." Santana clarifies the reason for her aunt to be in her sudden rage of 'I hate Knox and here's why'.

"What makes you say that?" Miss Pillsbury asks, letting herself relax a bit seeing as she is finally getting Santana to open up to her about _something._ The teenager rolls her eyes, sighs and leans her head to the side.

"Where do I start?" She sarcastically hums out. "There's the errands, the chores, the going to church at the ass crack of dawn." She lists out, staring at something's on the shelf behind the social worker.

"Are those things really so bad?" The red head counters with a raised eyebrow. "Didn't you have chores at home?"

"Fuck no." Santana blurts out and freezes for a moment when she receives a stern look from Miss Pillsbury. "Sorry, I mean, no." She rewords in a quieter voice. "My mom's never home and when she is, she's too busy sitting in front of the television with her drink of choice."

"Does your mother drink a lot?" The woman asks, grabbing her pen once more and scribbles down a few notes. Santana lowers in her seat and stares down at the nail file she's playing with between her fingers.

"She's _not_ an alcoholic if _that's_ what you're trying to say." She says, glancing at the woman over the file in her hand for a second. "She's just…" She quirks an eyebrow and twists her lips. "Lonely and sad." She mutters, swallowing the uncomfortable lump in her throat, images of her mother passed out in front of the television while 'The Notebook' or some other kind of tragic romantic movie plays in the background.

"Well, _you're here_." Emma gently taps her desk to get the girl's attention once again and when she does, she offers the girl a smile. "They obviously thought it was a good idea for you to stay with your aunt in Knox City." She bobs her head back and forth as she thumbs through some of the files. "They are expecting you to understand your wrongs and right them."

"Right them?" Santana counters, sitting up straight in her chair and cocks her head to the side. "How am I supposed to 'right' breaking and entering or vandalism?" She asks, thinking about it for a moment and then her eyes widen and she shakes her head. "Oh no, I am so not doing community service. You will not see me on the side of the road in some orange jump suit painting over some graffiti." She lifts her hand in the air to emphasize her disapproval of such a thing. "Uh uh."

"_Surprisingly_," Emma lifts a particular piece of paper, which Santana tries her hardest to try and look through, as she can almost make out the letter head. "There are no requests for community service, so," She glances at the girl over the piece of paper. "You're in the clear for that." Santana lets out a sigh of relief, bringing her hand up to cover her chest for good measure.

"So then what?" She asks, almost nervous to hear the answer. Emma places all of the loose pages and papers into the file folder neatly, stacking the three thick files accordingly and then folds her hands over her desk.

"You're going to have to stay out of trouble." The red head simply says.

"That's it?" Santana stammers, almost sure there's a 'but' somewhere hidden there. But, to her surprise, Emma just nods.

"But," She knew it was coming and she inwardly groans as she awaits the rest. "We are still going to meet every Wednesday. I have your teachers sending me weekly reports and your aunt as well." Santana's eyebrows knit together wondering when the hell Aunt Linda is finding time to write things about her between fiddling in her 'garden' and watching Wheel of Fortune. "As long as you go to school, get good grades and don't add anything to your record you're as good as gold." The red headed woman nods and smiles, enthusiasm radiating from the very tips of her fingers as she pushes her chair back and gets to her feet. "So, I will be seeing you next week right?" Santana hesitates, but eventually finds her body moving out of the chair and gathers her things.

"Uh, yeah, next week." She nods and all but stumbles out into the hall, barely hearing the assistant saying 'so long'.

Santana never thought she'd find comfort, or even consider a place like Pierce Parts and Tires as her 'hangout', but that is exactly what it is panning out to be. Both girls seem to always be here, and it feels like Aunt Linda is always sending her over to pick something up, so she doesn't exactly find it odd that she is sitting on the desk Thursday after school chatting it up with Quinn. Well, let the other girl attempt to chat it up with her anyway.

Since the revelation of Santana's interest in wanting to explore April's Rhodehouse, Quinn can't help but ask questions, finding herself intrigued in getting to know more about her childhood friend. To say she was surprised would be a lie, she pointed out to Santana just moments earlier that she had a feeling considering the way the girl had eyed her up and down the first day they ran into one another. And it wasn't one of those ever so usual Mrs. Pierce type of stare downs where judging is going on, it was a legit appreciation stare of the female body.

"So, is there a girl back home?" Quinn asks once she gets the topic out in the open again. Santana scoffs at the comment and rolls her eyes.

"There are girls, plural, but no one in particular." She nearly chuckles at the words, knowing that Quinn is wondering if she has a 'girlfriend' or some kind of steady waiting for her back in Boston. In fact, what's even more amusing to her is that the closest thing to a 'steady' fixture in her life back home is Puck, and he is most definitely _not_ her type.

"So, no girlfriend?" Quinn tilts her head to the side as the pen in her hand taps against the text book that is open up on the front desk of the shop. Santana purses her lips, glances down at the History book and shakes her head with absolutely no interest at all in continuing some sort of 'feelings' conversation.

"Maybe we can find you one here." She perks up, huge smile on her face, like she has suddenly found the meaning for Santana's reasons for being sent here and hums proudly to herself.

"I don't do relationships blondie." Santana tells the cheerleader as she reaches into her bag to pull out her compact, instantly opens it and gazes at her reflection. "The longest relationships I ever have are when I'm too tired to ask them to leave and they wind up spending the night." She explains without any remorse or guilt for clearly using those girls for her sexual desires.

"Maybe you just haven't found the right one." Quinn offers with a shrug of her shoulders and leans her chin in her hands.

"The right one does _not_ exist." Santana scoffs, lifting her finger to wipe just under her eye and then grazes her lips as she pouts into the mirror. "Even if it did," She shrugs herself and tosses her compact back into her bag. "I don't want _anything_ to do with that crap."

"Well," Quinn sighs, taps her fingers against her cheek as she thinks. "What kinds of girls do you like? Blondes, brunettes…" She trails off when the door separating the garage and the office opens and Brittany comes striding in with a water bottle in one hand and a dirty rag in the other. The taller girl senses a shift and that she has possibly just interrupted something, so her eyes flicker nervously to each girl to read their faces better.

"What's going on?" She tentatively asks and Santana tries to shoot a stare over in Quinn's direction but the girl is too busy smirking.

"Oh, I was just tryna figure out what kind of girls Santana is into." Quinn explains with a wave of her hand, her other still gripping onto the book she was reading. Brittany quirks an eyebrow and tilts her head to the side innocently.

"What?" She asks in an airy, half laugh of a voice, confusion written all over her face as her eyes flicker from Santana to Quinn.

"_You know_." Quinn giggles, figuring Brittany is only pretending to not know what she is talking about, only to figure out by Santana's silence that this is not the case. "Oh," Her eyes go wide and she sits up straighter in her chair. "I, have to… I'm just going to leave the awkwardness right now." She informs the girls before vanishing behind the glass door of the office that leads out into the noisy garage.

Brittany glances over her shoulder at the retreating figure that is Quinn before sending a look in Santana's direction. She is staring down at the spot Brittany is standing, wondering if she is actually looking at her shoes or the space around her shoes. Finally, after a few but very long seconds, her eyes flitter up to find those questioning blue eyes.

"What's with Quinn?" Brittany asks, seeming to be unfazed about what Quinn has just said. Santana's eyebrows furrow and she turns her head to the side, watching the tall cheerleading mechanic take a quick sip from her water bottle. "What?" Brittany nervously laughs out, feeling self conscious with the other girl staring at her.

"Britt," Santana kicks her legs as they dangle from the desk she is sitting on. "I," The word, letter, whatever, croaks out of her throat and she drops her gaze for a moment, she can't understand why this feels so hard. "I just," She's already come out to her aunt _and_ Quinn, this should not be so difficult. "I like girls." She finally blurts out, turns her head away from Brittany and squints her eyes as though prepared to shield anything about to come her way. But, instead of vicious words and a look of horror and or hatred, she hears a tiny giggle.

"Okay." Brittany replies easily and when Santana looks over the other girl shrugs her shoulders, lifts her now empty bottle of water and shakes it before tossing it into the trash. "Hey," Brittany looks at Santana. "When Q gets back, can you ask her to call Mr. Evans and tell him he can just pay whenever?" She patiently waits for her words to sink into her friend's brain, and smiles when she slowly nods. "Alright, thanks." She winks at Santana before pulling on the glass door and heading back out to whatever piece of machinery she's working on.

Santana takes her usual seat on the bleachers, right behind where the cheerleaders do their thing, leading cheers and whatnot. She crosses her legs at the knee and shoves her hands into the sleeveless, hooded jacket her aunt made her put on, even if it is still a million and one degrees out with all these people practically breathing on her. She tilts her head to the side as she watches the girls in short skirts stretch and chat while the boys on the field practice their throws and catches or whatever it is they do before games.

Brittany has her leg up on Quinn's shoulder, leaning forward, and she wonders if that is actually a stretch because it is pretty fucking hot. Shaking her dirty thoughts from her mind, she can't help but smile at the fact that the two girls are here at a game 'stretching' together and talking animatedly with one another. With a nod, she thinks she deserves a pat on the back, because she most definitely has something to do with this new rekindled friendship between the cheerleaders. Maybe they just needed some common ground to finally push that barrier known as Annie Pierce out of the way to get back together.

She feels movement beside her and when she looks to her right she finds the beaming smile of Quinn's cousin Kurt shining back at her blindingly. He sends her a quick little wave that she notices is covered in some fingerless gloves.

"It's like a sauna out here." Santana comments dully.

"Fashion first Santana." Kurt notes, his eyes flickering around the field, feigning as much interest in the proceedings about to take place as Santana. "So, a little birdie told me that you are just as into visiting a quaint little place called April's Rhodehouse as I am." He smirks raising one of her perfectly shaped eyebrows at her.

"Quinn told you." Santana breathes out, turning her attention back to the long legged cheerleaders practicing their splits before the big game.

"She didn't exactly have to." Kurt says, glancing over at what the girl's attention is on and chuckles. "I've seen you at school." He continues all the while her head stays forward. "Your eyes linger a little longer on the backsides of cheerleaders and you don't exactly make eye contact with any of the girl's at school." He points out jokingly and she finds it hard not to grin at his assessment. "Then again, I tend to hone in on things like that, ya know, birds of a feather."

"Do you like birds or something? Or do you just not have any of your own material?" She bites back, but not in a harsh manner, luckily he gets her sarcastic wall of bitchiness and laughs to himself.

"Anyway," He begins again after a few moments of silence dancing between them. "I was thinking we should plan a drive over there. You, me , Quinn and Tina." He suggest, the new name peaking Santana's interest and she turns her head to finally look at the boy beside her.

"Tina?" She quirks an eyebrow.

"Yeah," He nods and motions with his hand a few ways down the bleachers to some Asian girl sitting alongside a kid in a wheelchair. "She's dating Mike Chang." He points out onto the field at the football players. "He's like the best dancer at this school." He informs her with a smile. "Well, besides Brittany Pierce of course." He adds as an afterthought, his eyes shifting from the muscles on the field to the dancing cheerleader. Santana nods in agreement, though she's never seen that Chang kid move, she's pretty certain that no one can dance as well as the girl who lives next door.

"Does this Mike Chang go to April's?" Santana inquires, wondering if a Knox High football player would actually be seen at a gay bar in Texas.

"Are you kidding me?" Kurt gasps, bringing his hand to his chest just as any flamboyant gay boy would at a clearly incredulous question. "That boy will go anywhere music is playing." He explains with a flick of his wrist. "Actually, he and Brittany used to go to the same dance school." He further provides. "They were dance partners for a few years even."

"Oh." Santana lets out slowly, unaware that a boy's parents would ever enroll their son in a dance school, let alone parent's of a Texas high school football player.

"Are you going to Stars Lake after this?" Kurt asks, completely changing the subject, throwing Santana off guard for a moment.

"Uh," She shakes her head to get her mind back on track and pauses for a moment. "I, I don't think so." She informs the skinny boy, glancing briefly at his perfectly quaffed hair and wonders what kind of hair product he uses because it looks so soft. "Britt asked me to, but, I don't think it's my scene." She explains, pulling her hands out of her jacket pockets and resting them on her bare thighs.

"Oh," He lets out, obviously not happy about her response. "You should come, we can make plans for April's and, maybe you can even get Brittany to agree to come." He pushes, nudging his shoulder into Santana's, getting a curious look from the girl in the process. "I mean, the girl practically dances to the beat of her own heart, she won't care what kind of place it is."

"Psh." Santana rolls her eyes and shakes her head, lowering her gaze to her hands that are now fumbling over each other. "I bet Mrs. Pierce wouldn't be too happy about her daughter's whereabouts." She comments, quickly glancing over her shoulder to where she'd spotted Brittany's mother when she first arrived to make sure she was far enough out of ear shot.

"Yeah, that woman is ice cold." He notes, looking back at the woman as well. "But, well, Britt is gonna do what she wants." He shrugs his shoulders. "Her mother is just an inconvenience in her life. That's all." Santana sends him a questioning look, but it goes unnoticed by the boy who smiles and waves over at Quinn who is waving back over at them. When Santana looks over she smiles back at Quinn, but then her eyes fall onto the girl a little behind her, and she finds her smile widen a bit as Brittany waves cutely at her. "Well, I'm gonna go back over to sit with Tina, you're more than welcome to join us over there." He points to where his friends are, but Santana declines the invitation with a polite shake of her head.

Instead, she stays put, by herself and watches the game solo. The crowd is louder than usual, seeing as it is the homecoming game, and the fences are more decorated to commemorate the event. She watches in boredom as the first half of the game slowly drones on. When the whistle blows to signal the end of the first half, she adjusts her body on the metal seat beneath her, wondering somewhere in the back of her mind if they sell those pads team mother's are always carrying around with the school's name on it here.

But, before she has the opportunity to go venture off to the food shack to check that out, a voice comes over the speakers to announce the Homecoming King and Queen. Realizing this is a moment she should pay attention to, considering Brittany is a part of it, she sits a bit straighter at peers over the fence to only notice the absence of said cheerleader. Everyone begins to 'ooh' and 'ahh' at the end of the field where three shiny new cars are driving up onto the track with six couples sitting on the back of the convertibles.

* * *

><p>Santana waits by a brown pick-up truck, her eyes flicker over towards that powder blue one every now and again, as she waits for Quinn. Brittany had won Homecoming Queen, and she looked so beautiful and gracious as she accepted her crown and sash. It was a nice moment. But then when Finn Hudson was declared Homecoming King, it kind of put a damper in Brittany's moment. He fist pumped, shoved the other guys who were in the running, playfully of course, and then wrapped his arm around the poor girl's shoulders like he'd won <em>her<em> and not some stupid sash and crown. He even topped it off with a kiss on her cheek.

She'd already told Brittany she had decided against the party the other day, claiming she'd promised Aunt Linda she'd help with something. But, truth is, now she _wants_ to go to this party to keep an eye on Finn fucking Hudson. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see he's got the hots, or something for Brittany Pierce, and considering his track record with blonde cheerleader's from Knox City, well, Santana is just not willing to play with those odds. If for any reason she has been sent to this hell hole, she can't help but feel it's her duty to keep that losers hands off of Brittany, feeling guilty she wasn't here to do the same for Quinn.

"Hey." Quinn calls out when she finds Santana leaning against her truck, hands in her pockets and a glare on her face. "Who are you staring at like that?" She chuckles and glances around to find someone worth that kind of Lopez look of death. Santana shakes her head, pushes herself from the truck and tucks some hair behind her ear.

"I was wondering if you'd mind another passenger to this… Stars Lake thing." She wonders, of course knowing that Quinn would even be willing to kick her cousin out of the truck if it meant Santana had changed her mind and wanted to come to the party.

"Of course." Quinn smiles as she tosses her cheerleading bag into the back of her truck. "I just gotta stop home and change first, and then gotta go by Kurt's." She motions for her cousin to head in their direction from where he is busy talking to Tina and the kid in the wheel chair.

Santana watches as Kurt gently pats the shoulder of the kid in the wheel chair, kisses Tina on the cheek and then quickly walks over to Quinn's truck. She stands to the side as the boy slides in on the front bench of the truck and glances over her shoulder quickly. Over by the powder blue truck she spots another blonde cheerleader looking in her direction, her blue eyes curious and slightly dim as she watches Santana move closer to the brown truck.

Her focus on the dark haired girl is broken however, when Finn Hudson comes barreling over in her direction. He lifts her up in a cheerful way, spins them around with a huge smile on his face, all the while she is trying to push her body from his grasp. When her feet finally meet the ground again, she presses her hands to his chest to put some distance between them, but he pays no mind. He goes on and on about how it was meant to be that they won King and Queen, that much Santana can hear. But when she closes the door to Quinn's truck, their conversation turns into a silent movie, and she makes up the words that go along with their moving mouths.

As Quinn pulls out of the field house parking lot, Santana stares out the window one last time, finding those blue eyes looking to where the brown truck just was.

* * *

><p>Santana is leaning up against a tree off to the side of a big group of people who are standing around a small fire set up a few feet away. She glances down to the contents of the red cup that some jock had given her and for the first time in ever, she isn't in the mood to drink at a party. Laughs and loud voices catch her attention and she looks around the wooded area to see a bunch of different tiny groups standing around, drinking, joking around and seemingly having a good time.<p>

She lets out a sigh, she'd let Quinn drag her here because… well, because otherwise she'd be sitting at Aunt Linda's forced to watch reruns of Three's Company. So, standing around with her 'peers' seems like the better option. Besides, Quinn isn't so bad. In fact, hanging out with her has actually been pretty cool. But Quinn and avoiding her aunt's television programs are not the only reasons she opted to join in on Knox City High festivities.

Brittany is standing on the other side of the field with a group of her fellow cheerleaders and some stray jocks who are clearly trying too hard. While the other girls laugh along with some most likely awful pick up line or horrid joke, Brittany is glancing around, obviously not paying attention at all to anyone. Seeing her again has definitely done something to Santana, what that is she is unsure of but she is definitely sure that she likes it. It's easy with Brittany. Kind of like how it's easy with Quinn but, it's different.

Feeling as though she has been leering too hard for too long Santana tears her eyes from Brittany and looks around at the other kids that have become her classmates since her move from Boston. She finds Quinn easily enough, she's standing as far away as possible from Finn Hudson who has been yapping to some dim witted cheerleader who is either too stupid or already too drunk to realize that every time she laughs she spills half of her drink all over the ground. She also believes that this girl is either too stupid or too drunk to realize how incredibly boring Finn fucking Hudson is.

She rolls her eyes and huffs as she bends down to place her still very full red cup onto the ground. Santana has no intentions of drinking this evening, especially not with Aunt Linda waiting up for her. Just as she stands straight up again to lean her back against the tree she feels a soft touch on her shoulder and before she can turn around to find the culprit she feels lips ghosting her ear.

"Hey." The soft voice says, and she knows who it belongs to before she even meets those sparkling blue eyes. She half smiles in return, nods, continuing to rest up against the tree that has been keeping her company as she watches the kids of Knox act a fool.

"Hey." Santana drawls out, glancing down briefly to the cup she hasn't forgotten, but dares not to pick up again. The wrath of Aunt Linda still very much tingling her 'Tana-senses'.

"Why are you over here by yourself?" Brittany asks, her eyes flitting from the scene of her classmates and teammates wandering around in groups with red solo cups in hand. "Are you okay?" She queries, taking up the spot only inches away against the tree from the other girl. Santana shrugs, looks to Brittany and then back out to the field just beyond the beginning of the lake.

"Yeah." She replies, forcing a smile and a nod to make it more believable. "I guess I'm just thinking about home." She adds, her voice sounding a lot sadder than she had intended and she can feel those blue eyes land on her without having to see them.

"Oh," Brittany breathes out. "Okay." From the corner of her eye, Santana can see the cheerleader nod her head and rest comfortably against the tree some more.

"Doesn't mean you have to stand in solitude with me." Santana tells her, lifting her hand from behind her to motion out to the Knox City High School student body. "I'm fine on my own." She says a tad quieter and looks to the ground as her hand moves down to her side.

"Oh." Brittany sighs in understanding and Santana can feel the movement beside her as the blonde makes to push herself from the tree. Santana inwardly groans to herself and rolls her eyes. She didn't mean to come off snappy or rude, and before the Brittany can fully remove herself from her spot Santana reaches out to grab her wrist.

"But," She starts, catching those blue eyes with her own, but only for a second. "Doesn't mean you have to leave." Her head shakes, wondering where this feeling of slight regret for speaking before she thinks came into play. "I can still think with you here." She explains, finding Brittany's stare once more before she takes her place against the tree again. Santana smiles to herself triumphantly, operation be polite is a lot easier with Brittany, Aunt Linda would be proud she thinks and smirks to herself.

"Are you at least having fun?" Brittany asks, tilting her head to the side to gauge Santana's expression before she answers. The shorter girl knits her eyebrows and opens her mouth to speak, glancing around before she comes up with a response close to the truth.

"Uh," She clears her throat and shrugs her shoulders. "It's definitely different." She offers, looking down at the ground where her shoe has been digging into the dirt.

It's totally different from the field parties she's used to back home. There, no one's wearing a stupid uniform or saying 'dude' in every other sentence. Guys aren't fist bumping about touchdowns and trying to get the cheerleader's to twirl around in their short skirts, though, as she thinks about it she wouldn't mind that last part much. But, truth is, back home there's just people standing around taking shots off of each other, swallowing pills offered on a randoms tongue and a lot of raids by cops. Again, she finds herself thinking the latter for this place seems to be a lot better, no cops, no problems.

"Are you?" Santana asks after a few moments of silence between the two of them, realizing she's been in her own mind for a while now.

"I guess." Brittany replies dully, her shoulders shrug and Santana notices how completely uninvolved she is with this whole gathering. This is someone who has pretty much put this whole thing together, standing idly on the side lines looking utterly bored. "I mean, this is about all there is to do here that is even remotely fun." She smirks and playfully rolls her eyes, getting a small chuckle from Santana. "It's either this or go bowling, and putting my feet in shoes that smell that bad doesn't have the same appeal as it used to." They both laugh, but it's brief and then there's nothing but silence, safe for the party going on around them. Brittany looks across the way at some of the football players making some freshman go into the lake and she twists her lips as her smile begins to fade. She nudges Santana's shoulder with her own, catching the girl's attention back onto her. "But, I'm having fun talking to you, so I guess it makes up for this mess." She looks back out to the 'mess' she is referring to and Santana can't help but grin.

"Wow, thanks." She chuckles. "Good to know I'm a step up from beer bongs and swinging from a rope into a probably very dirty lake." Santana continues to laugh and shakes her head when she receives a playful slap on the arm from Brittany, not noticing how the hand lingers for a moment longer than it probably should or was meant to.

"Shut up." Brittany giggles, finally bringing her hand back to her own personal space. "You know what I mean." Santana's laughter subsides and she nods, even if she may not fully understand Brittany's words. But, before she can really go over them again she feels movement beside her and then lips ghost her ear. "Follow me." She whispers to Santana and although she does not have to turn around to place the voice to a face, confusion still covers her features and she tosses a raised eyebrow in Brittany's direction. Brittany just smiles, she's already walking in the opposite direction of the party and she waves her hand for Santana to do as she says and follow her.

As she pushes herself from the tree, Santana glances around the sea of Knox City High students but none of them are paying attention to anything else except themselves and the conversations they are all too wrapped up in. So, with a deep breath she spins around the tree and follows the faint image of Brittany ahead, picking up her pace to catch up before she gets lost in the woods by herself. Within in seconds she is right behind her and the tall cheerleader looks over her shoulder, that same smile on as before and a twinkle in her eye thanks to the moonlight.

"Take my hand." Brittany tells her and her hand is already reaching back to take Santana's in her own before the shorter girl can react.

She's a bit weary when she feels Brittany's hand grab hers and she can't help but be very aware of the way her fingers wrap around hers, touching the back of her own or the way that she shifts her palm so that she can lace their fingers together. At first Santana just lets her hand be held by Brittany, too shocked by the way she is so open and touchy not having a care in the world about anyone seeing. But then she remembers they are in the woods, its dark and its Brittany, her childhood best friend and she holds her hand back.

Brittany giggles when she feels Santana's fingers curl with her own and she tugs her further away from the party. They've already gone pretty far seeing as the music is but a faint background noise and the only sound that can be heard is water. It's not loud in fact, it's soft and soothing, kind of like the way a mobile sounds hanging above a child's crib.

Brittany slows down once they enter a sort of clearing and Santana follows suit, her steps turning shorter and come to a near stop. Her brow furrows, her head turns to the right and her mouth opens and she is only broken out of her daze when she walks into Brittany who has stopped moving. Brittany chuckles when Santana almost falls back and then carefully pulls her hand from Brittany's grasp. Their arms hang between them and Brittany watches brown eyes take in the scenery.

"These parties are lame." Brittany says, facing the small lake in front of them and takes a few steps wrapping her arms around herself. Santana eyes flicker to Brittany who is now a few feet in front of her and watches the way her hands rub up and down her pale, toned arms even though it's not cold at all. "You know," She spins around, a tentative yet friendly smile gracing her lips. "I would have driven you here tonight." She tells Santana whose eyes quickly look away to the water. "You're not exactly out of my way." Brittany adds and she tilts her head to the side when Santana finally looks back at her with a guilty expression on her face and she shrugs.

"It was last minute." Santana half lies while she kicks the ground with her not appropriate footwear and crosses her arms over her chest. "Besides, I don't really roll with your crowd." She raises her eyebrows as if to make a point but Brittany scrunches her nose and tilts her head to the other side.

"But," Brittany drawls out, smacks her lips together and takes a step towards Santana. "You 'roll' with me." She smiles making Santana chuckle at the way Brittany says 'roll' like she's from Boston or some big city. "Don't worry about those other girls." She assures her, glancing off somewhere behind Santana, the pathway they had just emerged from and waves her hand towards it. "They're like… robots."

"So then why do you hang out with them?" Santana asks her, finally removing herself from the spot she has been standing completely still in since they arrived. Brittany watches her walk, twists her lips as she thinks of her answer and shrugs her shoulders.

"It's easy." She replies but is quick to shake her head at herself and laugh at her words catching Santana's attention and a raised eyebrow. "Actually, it's the opposite of easy but, with my mom…" Her eyes look up to the bit of sky that is visible through the tress and she takes in a calming breath. "It's easier for her if I'm 'friends' with those girls."

"I guess." Santana offers, feeling as though the explanation for why Brittany runs with the crowd she does will never become something she'll understand. Brittany steps out a little bit further and takes a seat right in front of the much smaller lake that seems hidden and secret.

"So," Brittany interrupts the quiet that has taken over them, glancing over to the spot about two feet away from her where Santana has taken up residence. "I was thinking about what you told me the yesterday."

Santana sucks in her lips and gently bites down, she nods a few times, she knew this topic was going to be brought up again. And not because Brittany wants to interrogate her, one thing she remembers vividly about the girl next door, is her insatiable need for facts and understanding, so questions were bound to arise.

"Oh, well, it's not a big deal." Santana muses, tilting her head from side to side, her focus on the lake before them as to avoid those curious blues. But, then she stops being so blasé about it all, and worry enters her mind. "Wait, is it?"

"No." Brittany giggles, tossing a few pebbles Santana's way playfully. "It's not at all." Santana lets out a sigh of relief, she hadn't even realized she was holding her breath. It's only been recent that she's found herself being able to say those words out loud and they just felt so natural rolling off her tongue she hadn't even considered them to be damaging. So, with Brittany's airy giggle to follow her assurance that sexuality is no problem, Santana feels at ease once again in her presence. "Did you think I would react differently?" Brittany questions, tilting her head towards the girl beside her and watches as the shorter girl's shoulders shrug up and down. "I don't judge, you of all people should know that. Besides, I'm friends with you because of who you _are_, not who you want to be with." She states simply.

"You don't know who I am." Santana blurts out, her words coming out a lot harsher than she had meant. And Brittany sends her a startled gaze. "I mean, it's been a few years Brittany. I'm not the same little girl I was." She looks Brittany up and down and then adds, "Neither are you." They stare at one another for a few minutes, until the stillness around them fades away with the crack of a smile forming on Brittany's lips.

"_Maybe_ we are." Brittany shrugs, smile still in place, her hands move to take her shoes off and she puts them beside her. Santana studies the other girl as she stands up and carefully lifts her tank top over her head, prompting a look of confusion to come over her friend's face.

"Uh, so, how'd you find this place?" Santana inquires, shaking her head as to not stare at Brittany who is now standing in her bikini top and ready to push her short shorts down her legs.

"I come here to think and get away from everything." She explains, turning away from her friend and walking towards the lake. "I found it once when I was bored at some other lame ass party." Brittany looks over her shoulder when her feet become submerged in the lakes water and she smiles. "Are you coming in?" She asks with a quirked eyebrow.

"Definitely not." Santana firmly states with a shake of her head, eyeing the lake up like it's just called her mother easy or something equally offending. Brittany's angelic chuckle catches her attention from her stare down with the mini lake and she can't help but smirk. "I can't believe _you're _going in there. You can't even see the bottom, there could be bodies in there." Santana sternly explains as she crosses her arms over her chest, but Brittany only continues to laugh.

"Uptight." Brittany sing songs. Reminding Santana of what she had said at the garage that one time, about her needing to let loose.

"Ugh…" Santana groans, her hands battling whether or not to push herself up from the ground, and she looks at the blonde in confusion and uncertainty. But then Brittany gives her that look, the one she used to give her when they were kids, and Santana finds herself on her feet within seconds. Her shirt finds Brittany's as well as her shoes and then she shimmies out of her skirt, not wanting the murky water ruin her designer threads. "Ah!" She yelps as soon as her feet come in contact with the lake. "It's so cold." She informs the giggling blonde, who is already ventured further into the water to where it's up to her waist. "Why?" Santana questions, sending her friend a curious stare as she slowly continues in the same direction.

"I don' know why it's cold." Brittany laughs out, finally submerging her arms and bending her knees so the water is up to her neck. "I'm not a scientist. Stop being a baby." She teases, tossing her head back to glance up at the stars in the sky. When Santana gets waist deep, Brittany smiles at her and waves her to come her way. "See, it's not so bad." Santana scoffs at this statement, but lets her feet and arms take her further out into the lake nonetheless.

They tread for a little while in silence, both staring up at the starry sky, comfortable in each other's presence. Santana's teeth have stopped chattering, the water and the air not too much of a contrast now, probably because she's focusing on other things.

"Do you think it's possible for people to change?" Brittany asks suddenly, breaking Santana from the few moments of complete blankness. The shorter girl lowers her gaze from the sky to glance over at the blonde who is still very much staring at the sparkles above.

"Of course." Santana shrugs, mulling over the vagueness in the question itself as well as the answer. "I mean, I think." She adds, because she isn't the knower of all. "People grow up and learn from mistakes, well, some do." She points out with a roll of her eyes.

"No." Brittany breaks her friend's philosophical thought process and looks away from the sky to the dark haired girl. "I mean, like," She twists her lips in thought, her eyes flicker down at the way the top of the water moves like little ocean waves when her arms move beneath. "Do you think someone who has been 'straight' their whole life could turn gay one day?" She asks innocently. Santana's head jerks back, not fully prepared for this line of questioning whatsoever. She chuckles a bit, tilts her head to the side and looks at the water Brittany had just moments ago.

"I don't know." Santana says, because in all honesty she doesn't have an answer. "I guess it's possible." She offers realizing that this question probably has no real answer. "But, I don't think they change really. They just… realize something that was always there." She clarifies, trying her hardest to put her intricate thoughts into actual words and she watches the blonde take her response as she swims a little closer, obviously thinking hard.

"Santana," Brittany pauses and looks down for a second. "You know what I think?" She half smiles and meets Santana's eyes again. "Well, I'll tell you." She continues before the other girl can even jump in. "I think that it's not about boy or girl, gay or straight." Still getting closer, both girls realize that they can reach the bottom and their feet rest to the ground. "I mean, it's possible that it's about the person, right?" Her head tilts to the side, speaking so quietly to ensure their conversation is solely between them.

"That would be nice, I guess." Santana replies with a smile.

"Well, I believe that." She affirms with a nod and then playfully splashes water at Santana as she moves back to shore. The shorter girl laughs, wipes her eyes, and follows the blonde's lead. "We should probably head back to the party before they start thinking we were abducted by aliens." Brittany jokes.

When they get back to the party, the crowd has already kind of dwindled down to couples making out against trees and a jock or two passed out on the ground. Santana glances around, almost instantly finding Quinn and her cousin standing a few feet away talking to that Tina girl and her football boyfriend. She taps Brittany's arm to get her attention and motions over to the blonde and her group of friends. The head cheerleader nods, but hesitantly follows the dark haired girl over.

"Where have you been?" Quinn asks curiously, eyeing Santana up and down, taking in the fact that the bottom of her hair is a little damp. She tilts her head, purses her lips, but doesn't say anything because she notices Brittany's blonde hair is the same kind of wet.

"Around." Santana says, clears her throat and looks over her shoulder to find Brittany standing right beside her.

"So, we were just talking about April's." Kurt interrupts the awkward silent stares going on around him, and he bounces on the balls of his feet.

"What's that?" Brittany inquires, stepping forward to be a part of the circle of conversation.

"Oh Britt, I can't believe you haven't been yet." Mike, Tina's boyfriend chimes in and instantly gets the blonde's attention and smile. "We would totally dominate the dance floor there." He grins widely and confidently, getting a chuckle from his girlfriend as well as a nod from a few of the other's.

"It's a club?" The tall blonde asks, her head tilts to the side and she looks to Kurt.

"It's a gay bar outside of Knox." Quinn informs her, saving any strange silence from falling over them. Brittany's head nods, her eyes flicker to Santana briefly, but she still holds her smile.

"Oh," She says gently and then nudges Santana's arm with her elbow. "We should totally go." She tells the dark haired girl.

"Well, that's what we were planning." Kurt interrupts with a clap of his hands. "Santana told Quinn she wants to go, so I took it upon myself to gather up the group of misfits here." He motions to his friends who roll their eyes at his name for them. "And plan a night out for us to get our gay on, well, me and Santana always have it on, but… well, you get it." He waves with a giggle at Brittany who chuckles in a breath and nods.

"If it's alright with… you're group," Brittany speaks up after Kurt's laughter fades. "I'd love to join you. I mean, any excuse to dance and I'm in." She smiles over at Mike who returns it with a grin of approval and then her blue eyes travel over to hazel ones. "Quinn? Is it cool if I crash?"

"Of course." Quinn replies softly with a nod of her head. "Is it cool if you take Santana home?" She giggles. "I'm pretty tired here and, well, you two live next door to each other."

"Sure." Brittany laughs out and rolls her eyes, stepping across the tight knit circle and throws her arm over Quinn's shoulder as she leads them out to where the trucks are parked.

Santana follows suit, a little behind Kurt, Tina and Mike, simply watching the five people conversing and smiling at one another. She doesn't really care so much about the other three, but more so the two blonde's that look like they used to when they were little. They are laughing and playfully hip checking one another, and Santana finds herself smiling along with their friendly banter. She may not admit it, to anyone including herself, but it's things like this, the little moments between people that she misses the most.

Santana and Brittany wave and say goodbye to the other four kids before shutting the doors to the powder blue pick-up truck. Its dark, the trail leading out of Stars Lake, but straight above them is completely clear of trees allowing them to see the night sky without a problem. Once they get onto the south service road, it's still a while's way down until they reach their homes. Santana is taken out of her quiet thinking of what she would be doing back home when the truck slows down.

"What happened?" She asks cautiously, hoping upon hope that they haven't broken down or something worse. Brittany chuckles as she rears off to the side of the road and parks.

"I've been thinking." Brittany twists her lips as she unbuckles her seatbelt and glances over at Santana, taking in her nervous face. "If you keep driving Miss Linda's truck the way you do, you're gonna have to keep bringing it into the shop." She comments with a raised eyebrow, getting an embarrassed grin from the girl beside her. "So, how's 'bout I show you how to properly drive stick." Santana rolls her eyes playfully and shakes her head.

"Britt, it's like pitch black out here." She motions out to the darkness covering the dirt path of the south service road, but the blonde shrugs and shuffles across the bench seat.

"So what?" She laughs out. "Come on, I know this road like the back of my hand." Brittany assures her tapping her leg and motions for her to climb over her and into the driver's spot. Santana hesitates for a moment, but eventually gives into the blonde's requests.

"Fine, but if I break your truck do not think you're gonna trick me into one of those monkey suits to help fix it." Santana spits out in amusement.

When she adjusts her position behind the wheel, Brittany moves closer, their thighs touching and she grabs Santana's hand to bring it to the gear shift, letting her hand remain over the dark haired girl's. She taps her hand against Santana's left thigh, indicating her to press down onto the clutch and then maneuvers the shift into first gear.

They laugh, bicker and yelp as Santana drives the powder blue truck recklessly and less than perfect down the south service road. Brittany tries to give her pointers, all the while continuing to gently lead the gear shift into the correct positions whenever Santana hits the clutch. When she gets into a steady speed, not having to adjust the gears any longer, she smirks over at the blonde who beams back at her.

"See, it's not hard." She notes and of course the truck jerks a little. "Well, not _so_ hard." She corrects. "Pull into your driveway." Brittany points over with her free hand to Linda's pathway and Santana does as instructed.

"Ah." Santana squeals when the car abruptly stops and squeaks.

"I think that after a few more lessons, you'll be good to go." Brittany points out with a hearty chuckle.

"Well, thanks." The shorter girl breathes out, glancing over in the direction of the living room of her aunt's house where the light is still on. "For everything I guess." She shrugs her shoulders, sliding her hand from the shift and from beneath Brittany's hand.

"Uh," Brittany shakes her head, a nervous laugh escaping her lips, finally letting her hand fall from the shifter. "Yeah, anytime." She smiles politely at the dark haired girl.

"I'll see you tomorrow then." Santana says and reaches to open the door and hops out.

"Wait." Brittany calls out and climbs out of the truck quickly and catches up with Santana.

"What?" She asks, slightly turning her body to the blonde who only motions for her to continue walking up towards the steps.

"I," Brittany starts, shoving her hands into the back pockets of her shorts and walks with Santana to Linda's porch steps. "I was thinking that," She stammers, eyes fall to the ground where her feet kick at pebbles and clumps of dirt. "You wanna sit and talk for a bit?" She bites on her lower lip, then slowly lifts her gaze up to meet Santana's.

"O…okay." Santana nods, her eyebrows knit and unknit as she watches a pretty smile come to the blonde's lips. "Sure." She adds, turning fully to face Brittany unable to fight the arched eyebrow that comes to her face when the blonde's hand comes up to tuck a lock of her brown hair behind her ear.

Brittany clears her throat and then quickly, as well as nervously, yanks her hand back down to her side before taking a seat on the bottom step of Miss Linda's porch. Santana tentatively follows, taking a seat beside the blonde, resting her hands onto her lap. She can't help but stare up at the stars as Brittany starts talking about school, cheerleading and memories because she fears if she looks over at the blonde, then the burning on her face will be seen. Brittany's voice sends tingles through the air waves, the same tingles Santana still feels on her cheek where Brittany's fingers grazed only moments ago when she tucked her hair behind her ear.

"You know what I haven't done in years?" Brittany suddenly breaks away from her rant about how her cheer coach makes the girl's weigh in before each competition and looks over at Santana.

"Taken a breath." Santana jokes getting a playful eye roll from Brittany as well as a slap on the arm.

"Funny!" The cheerleader giggles.

"What's that?" She asks, wondering what kind of information Brittany is going to give her.

"I haven't made up any 'once upon a time's' in forever." Brittany nods, affirming her statement as truth, raising an intriguing eyebrow at the girl beside her.

"Wow." Santana leans back, her elbows resting on the second step of the porch. "Neither have I." She admits with a shake of her head, remembering how many stories the pair had made up in their hay day. "You used to tell the best stories." She comments with a soft voice, her eyes flitter from the nights starry sky and over to twinkling blues.

"Well, I had quite the imagination then." Brittany muses, looking down at her hands that have found comfort between her thighs. "We used to sit up all night and go back and forth, adding to one another's tale of princesses and love." She giggles, her head tilts from side to side as she recalls those nights under Miss Linda's over sized coffee table, telling long, never ending fairytales of the two princesses.

"Yeah." Santana chuckles, nodding in rememberance. Her head flickers towards the house behind them and notices the light in the living room is shut off, informing her that Aunt Linda has gone off to bed. "I should probably go in." She motions with her hand over her shoulder. Brittany nods and pushes herself up from the spot on the step they'd been sitting on for the past hour.

"Yeah," She glances over in the direction of her own house. "It's passed my cerfew, sure my mom's freaking out or," She laughs, though there is no amusement behind it. "Having a party probably thinking I'm out with Finn Hudson." She rolls her eyes, making Santana purse her lips at the mention of the boy.

"What is it with him?" Santana asks, as she wipes the back of her skirt off of dirt from the porch step. Brittany opens her mouth to speak, tilts her head and then sighs.

"He's annoying." She offers with a light giggle, getting a confused smirk out of the shorter girl.

"He likes you." Santana states the obvious. Brittany runs her fingers through her long blonde hair and shrugs her shoulders.

"Not gonna happen." The cheerleader says, lifting her eyes up to find brown ones staring back at her.

"But you'd be like, the perfect couple." Santana mockingly replies, doing her best valley girl accent which receives a laugh from Brittany. "I mean, head cheerleader, captain of the football team," The dark haired girl shrugs, putting her hands into the back pockets of her jean skirt. "Why wouldn't it work? It's almost like it was written in the stars for you guys." She rolls her eyes at how corny that sounds, but how true it seems in those stupid 80's movies and prime time television shows. Brittany twists her lips and shakes her head, letting out a long breath through her nose.

"I could never fall for a guy like Finn Hudson." Brittany lets out, getting a sigh of relief from Santana.

"Thank God, he's an asshole." Santana points out with complete sureness.

"I mean, I don't even _like _him, so," She nervously bounces from the balls of her feet to her heels. "How could I ever fall in love with him?" It's not really a question in which an answer is needed so Santana doesn't feel she has to answer, but instead nods in agreement.

"Love is bogus anyway." She offers, freeing one of her hands from her pocket and tucks some hair behind her ear, watching how Brittany's hands fidget in front of her body.

"I don't think so." The dancer comments softly, getting a huff from her friend.

"Meet my parents." Santana rolls her eyes.

"Well," Brittany drawls out, her feet shifting against the ground which sounds loud considering the silence around them. "Goodnight Santana." She smiles up at the girl who nods.

"Yeah, goodnight." Santana says and then finds herself catch her breath when Brittany steps forward, brings her hand to her cheek and then leans in to set her lips to Santana's other cheek.

She slowly pulls away, watches Santana's eyes flicker between her own, as she lowers her hand from the other girl's cheek. Quickly, she averts her eyes back down to the ground and awkwardly turns her body. Santana stands there stock still as she watches Brittany walk down the dirt walk way of Aunt Linda's driveway and hop into her car. The roar of the engine finally breaks through the thumping of her heart in her ears and she takes a breath again. When she sees the tail lights of the powder blue truck vanish, she sighs out, a small smile graces her lips and her hand comes up to her cheek. Her fingers touching the spot where Brittany's lips just were.

* * *

><p>On any other day, the annoying buzzing sound coming from her alarm clock would cause her to throw an arm and knock it to the ground. On any other day, the thought of waking up to have to go to school so early in the morning rather than sleeping in all day long would send her into the depths of her usual moody self but, not today.<p>

Today, Santana welcomes the annoying daily reminder that it's time for school. She even smiles when she sits up in her bed and reaches over to turn her alarm off, which is so very unlike her. It's such an unusual day that her body sighs through her smile.

"Santana you've gotta get…" Aunt Linda, just like every other morning, comes barreling into her room prepared to wake up her niece but is beyond shocked to find the girl sitting up in bed.

"Morning Aunt Linda." Santana yawns, stretching her arms above her head and bouncing up from her bed.

"Are you…" Aunt Linda watches the girl walk by her and into the hall and she is quick to follow. "Are you smiling?" She asks curiously and semi cautiously, almost prepared for a complete 180 to take place and Santana to revert to her usual bitchy self. Santana grabs the coffee pot and a mug to pour herself a nice hot cup. Glancing over her shoulder as she does so she shrugs, smile still firmly in place.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't aware that smiling was not allowed." She jokes, her sarcasm not at all falling light even with the odd facial expression on her face. With a quick roll of the eyes she turns her back to her aunt and heads into the living room to watch some television before her morning ritual of getting ready.

"What is going on?" Aunt Linda whispers to herself.

On any other day, the annoying buzzing sound coming from her alarm clock would cause her to groan and desperately search for the offending object blindly. On any other day, she would wake up and like a drone go through the motions like a pod person, her usual 'perfect' self. Not today.

Today, Brittany welcomes the reminder that she needs to prepare herself for a day of school probably much like any other day of school. She will be wearing her usual cheerleading uniform, hair in a perfect pony tail and her regulation trainers. But today is different, she can just feel it in her bones and she can still feel the humming on her lips.

Brittany descends the tiny staircase, like every other day, but today there is softness to her step and airy lightness. She rounds the banister, making her way to the kitchen where her mother is preparing breakfast for her and her father. Brittany wraps her arms around her father's neck and kisses him on the cheek.

"Well good morning to you too sweetie." Mr. Pierce lightly taps his daughter's forearm with a huge grin on his face. "Someone woke up on the right side of the bed this morning." He points out and watches the young blonde skip from him and to the refrigerator to grab the carafe of orange juice waiting for her.

"Guess I just had a good night's sleep." She sighs, smile firmly in place as she pours her juice.

"I would hope so, you didn't come in until past curfew." Mrs. Pierce, always the buzz kill. Brittany's shoulder's slump slightly and she turns around with her lips twisted.

"Yeah, sorry bout that." She apologizes but it's clear on her father's face that it's no big deal.

"Oh honey, it's alright. You're a senior, this is the year you should be hanging out with your friends and making memories." Mr. Pierce assures her but Mrs. Pierce is quick to cut in.

"Who were you out with last night?" The older woman asks and it's not curiosity in her voice or even trying to make conversation, she is prying, trying to get information from her daughter. "I heard from Judy Fabray that that Finn boy has been chasing you around since the beginning of the summer." She winks at her daughter and turns to the stove where her pancakes are in need of being flipped. Brittany internally rolls her eyes, outwardly she shakes her head.

"The squad got together." She decides to leave the part out about how she actually threw the party, that was simply a minor detail. "So a bunch of us hung out all night." She shrugs. "Some football guys were there too." She adds as an afterthought to let her mother know that the Hudson boy was present at the party and hopefully this bit of information would suffice.

She hears her mother comfortably sigh and she knows that somewhere in that superficial mind she is most likely picturing Finn Hudson coming around for dinner sometime soon. Brittany always felt it's best to let her mother thinks what she wants to think.

"Here sweetie, eat up quick so you can get to school on time." Her mother tells her as she plops some scrambled eggs on her plate and her father ruffles the paper in front of him with that grin he always wears.

It's the same as any other day in Knox City, Texas but really, it's so different. At 7:15 Brittany Pierce pulls into the Lopez driveway to find Santana waiting on the front porch for her, leaning up against the railing with a small smile playing on her lips. Normally Brittany is waiting for a good ten minutes or so for the dark haired girl and more often than not greeted with a half of a smile and a grunt of appreciation.

She had been nervous, she still is nervous, that events from the prior night would dramatically change their dynamic that perhaps things would be uncomfortable and even tense. But it's hard for her to think that now as Santana stares into her eyes as she walks up to the truck.

"Morning." Brittany says, her voice soft and her smile thoughtful. Santana shuts the door as she slides onto the leather seat more comfortably and places her bag down by her feet. She turns her head towards Brittany, her hair flipping to the other side in the process and she sucks her lips in to her mouth briefly as though trying to hide her whole smile.

"Mornin." Santana replies, her eyes flitting from blue eyes to lips a few inches lower. Brittany feels her cheeks burn and clears her throat as she turns her head to the gear shift.

"Alright, off to school." She announces in a pathetic way to ease the tension she hoped wouldn't happen. But really, it's not the tension she had dreaded in fact it's an almost comfortable tension. One that makes her want to leave the truck in park in front of the Lopez house and slide a little closer to her passenger.

"Yeah, let's go." Santana chimes in slowly, tucking some hair behind her ear. The tension is clearly not one sided and Santana does her best to remain cool, calm and collected.

For the first five minutes of driving its pretty quiet in the truck, the only noise is that of the engine and their breathing. Santana's eyes remain forward, staring at the road ahead but every now and again they glance over to the girl who is sitting next to her. Brittany is doing her darnedest to keep her eyes focused on the road but finding it difficult when all she wants to do is look at the girl to her right.

With only a block and a half to go before they hit the high school Brittany rears off the road and onto a deserted side street and throws the truck into park. Santana squeals at the abrupt turning motion, her eyes wide with concern at first but then she calms down and curiosity takes over. They sit there, not moving and silent for a few more seconds until Brittany lets out a long sigh and all Santana can do is watch her.

"I had fun… last night." She tells her friend softly and Santana can't fight the grin that comes to her face. Brittany is nodding to herself, as though encouraging herself to continue and she slowly lifts her head to finally look at Santana. "With you. I had fun with you last night." She clarifies, not wanting to generalize the statement or the meaning behind it. Santana looks at her for a little while, taking in her features, her eyes and her lips that are slightly parted.

"Me too." She admits in a small voice that resembles a whisper and she can't understand why her voice is almost not there. Brittany half smiles and nods some more at the response.

"Truth is…" Her eyes look down to her hands that are twisting together nervously and she shifts in her seat as if fixing her posture. "I've been havin' fun hangin' out with you." Santana knows she is speaking to her, but in a way it kind of sounds like Brittany is having the conversation with herself. Especially with what comes out next. "I just don't know what that means." She turns her head in Santana's direction but her eyes don't meet brown ones at first, like she is carefully routing her stare to its destination.

When Brittany's eyes finally do find Santana's, the dark haired girl only looks back. She doesn't have any answers to give her and she surely doesn't have any reasons, if there were any. So she nods a few times, letting the words come into her brain and marinate there. You can't force understanding on anyone all someone can do is have patience and let them find their answers.

"Okay." Santana decides on, her words cautious and slightly guarded but understanding.

"I just know that I do like being around you, a lot and well, I guess I wanted you to know that." Brittany adds, so worried that her words weren't coming out right.


	5. Chapter 5

**In Wishes Made on Stars/Just a Small Town Girl, Just a City Girl**

_**August 4, 2003**_

_The night sky is clear, music plays softly in the background, the only noise besides that of the light conversation off in the distance between adults. Santana sits on a log with a branch in her hand, holding it ever so carefully and watches with intense concentration as she roasts the marshmallow on the other end over the tiny fire._

_Quinn sits on the log just next to her own, holding onto a branch similar to hers with the same idea on her mind as she licks her lips, just ready to feast on the gooey deliciousness. Brittany, who is huddled up next to Santana, watches on as her friend's patiently wait to enjoy their dessert while she nibbles on squares of chocolate._

"_Are you girl's having fun?" It's Aunt Linda who is making her way over towards the girl's, and the three of them nod, confirming the 'fun' being had. "Don't put it so much into the flame Santana." The older woman warns, resting her hand gently onto her nieces, and lifts the branch up a little._

"_I can do it __**myself**__." Santana grumbles, but allows her aunt to adjust the marshmallow just the same._

"_I __**told**__ you." Brittany murmurs with a giggle, getting a nudge in the shoulder from the dark haired girl who rolls her eyes and huffs._

"_See," Aunt Linda points when she finally releases her loose grip on Santana's hand, and takes a seat on the other log beside the young girls. "Now it won't get all burnt up and you won't have to start all over again." She explains, a pretty smile gracing her lips as she glances into the multicolored flames in front of her. _

"_Miss Linda," Quinn speaks up, letting her hazel eyes flitter to the older woman, trusting her marshmallow won't fall to the fate that her last one had. "Is it true that if you make a wish on a shooting star, that it, like, has to come true?" The little blonde girl asks, her head tilts to the side and she blinks innocently at the woman. Linda grins, glancing at the other two girl's beside her who wait for her to respond, obviously just as eager to hear the answer._

"_Well," She clears her throat and shifts into a more comfortable position on her log. "I always believed that a wish on __**any**__ star can come true." The older Latina informs the young girls, all of them looking back at her in wide eyed amazement. _

"_But," Santana interrupts, a small pout graces her lips and she tilts her head in confusion. "Then that means every wish that anyone makes comes true." She reasons, not quite believing that what her aunt says is fact. Aunt Linda hums out a smile, lets her eyes land on each of the three girls, and then shakes her head slowly._

"_Not necessarily Tana," She shakes her finger in the air before leaning forward to rest her elbow onto her knee and gaze into the fire. "See, the stars above are the hopes and dreams that we wish to come true." She begins, and points to her chest with her other hand and looks over at the girls. "The ones that matter the most, the ones that will forever change our lives and make us who we are." She tries her best to explain for the youngsters and she crosses her leg over her knee. "In order for your wish to come true, you must make the right wish on the right star." She watches as each girl's forehead crinkles, nose twitch and lips part in thought._

"_You mean," Quinn chimes in, gaining everyone's attention. "Like, if you wish for happiness, you need to wish on the happiness star?" The blonde asks, her voice full of uncertainty, but feels better when Linda smiles and nods back at her._

"_Exactly." Linda softly replies, delighted that Quinn has understood her._

"_And if you wish for love, you have to wish on the love star?" Santana asks, needing further confirmation in her friend's assessment._

"_Yes sweetheart." Aunt Linda reaches out to adoringly squeeze her niece's knee, getting a proud smile out of the girl at her understanding. "But," She interrupts again, before they start wishing away. "The wish is not granted straight away." She explains, pointing at each of the girls. "You have to prove yourself in order for your wish to come true."_

"_Prove yourself?" Brittany finally joins in on the conversation, her voice squeaks a bit and makes Aunt Linda chuckle._

"_Yes Britt-Britt." The older woman nods, leaning more forward to look at the young blonde. "To get happiness, if that's what your wish is, you need to be kind." She tells them. "If you are not, then you don't deserve happiness, do you?" The girls slowly shake their heads._

"_Well, what about love?" Quinn wonders aloud, pulling her marshmallow from the flame and pulls at it with her fingers._

"_Love," She sighs out, blinks away the light behind her lids from the fire and looks up to the sky. "For love, you must allow yourself to be open to anything and everything. The silly," She leans over and tickles Santana's sides, only stopping when her niece giggles and bats her hands away. "The serious," She makes a straight face, once again receiving giggles but from all the girls. "The hurt," She lets out a little softer, a tiny sadness coming to her eyes. "All of it." Her hand waves in the air for emphasis. "And there's __**one**__ person out there, that even with the silly, the serious and the hurt and all the other stuff, it almost doesn't matter." Linda's shoulders shrug and she smirks at the tiny ones around her._

"_Love hurts?" Brittany asks, after a few short moments of silence, her eyes flicker over to Santana's fingers pulling the marshmallow from the end of the branch._

"_Sometimes." Linda responds simply._

"_That sucks." Santana sighs in disappointment._

"_But that's what makes it worth it." Her aunt points out._

"_That doesn't make any sense." The girl with the hazel eyes blurts out, her mouth filled with the gooey treat._

"_Well, you girls are friends, right?" She asks, looking between the three who pretty much all give her the same bewildered look, but nod nonetheless._

"_Duh." Santana says._

"_Yeah, bests." Quinn agrees, licking her fingers clean._

"_Would you __**ever **__stop being friends?" She questions, getting a horrified look from the three, and she does her best to hold in her chuckle._

"_Never." Brittany tells her, getting a 'yeah' from Quinn._

"_Even if you got into a fight?" Linda delves in a little deeper, wanting the girl's to feel as though they got answers after this conversation. They all shrug and nod their heads. "That's kind of like love. That even if it hurts, it doesn't." She says. "Because no matter what, you're your happiest with that one person, the most comfortable and…" She pauses, and looks over at how Santana is letting Brittany try some of the marshmallow that is stuck to her fingers and she grins. "You'll know it when you find it." She tells them softly, finally letting the silent hums of the girls enjoying their dessert dance around her, and she closes her eyes lifting her head up to the sky._

* * *

><p><em><strong>October, 2011<strong>_

"What's with you?" Aunt Linda asks as she walks by and playfully slaps the back of Santana's head.

"Hey." The young girl greets her with a tired voice, half of her body is leaning over her Math text book as she lazily watches her fingers roll the pen in her hand.

"Busy day at school?" The older woman wonders, making her way over to the refrigerator, pulling out things for dinner tonight.

"Something like that." Santana mumbles, sitting upright in her chair and finally drops the pen to her blank notebook.

Her lips twist as she thinks about this morning and how she was in such a good mood and then Brittany said _that_. She's trying not to over think it, but what does it all mean? Shit, Brittany even said, 'I don't know what that means'. Santana lets out a sigh, tilts her head and thumbs the pages of her textbook. It probably doesn't mean anything, obviously just Brittany being her friendly, bubbly self, as always.

Shaking her head free of the thoughts for what feels like the millionth time today, she pushes her chair back, closes her books and picks them up to retreat into her room. She nods to her aunt and grunts to express her departure, and when she gets to her bedroom door she leans her back into it to open, seeing her arms are full. When she turns to face her room, her eyes widen and she drops her books to the floor.

"What the…!" She practically shouts, jumping back a few feet and brings her hand to her chest. "Britt, you scared the shit out of me." She heaves out, leaning forward with her hands on her knees, trying her best to catch her breath. The blonde giggles from where she is leaning against the sill of Santana's open bedroom window.

"We used to sneak into each other's rooms all the time." Brittany interrupts Santana's mini heart attack, pushes herself from the window and taps on the glass with an amused grin on her lips. "I'm sorry." She offers an apology, but Santana smirks and shakes her head, waving it off immediately.

"No, it's fine, just…" She stands up and lets out a long breath. "Don't be all quiet and sneaky about it." She laughs out, getting a nod and a grin from the blonde.

"What's the fun in _that_?" Brittany counters with a raised eyebrow, getting an eye roll out of Santana. "Anyway," She skips towards Santana's bed and plops herself onto the mattress, turning herself onto her side. "_I_ was wondering if you wanted to drive down to Carmel's." She explains the reason for her appearing in Santana's bedroom, propping her head up into her hand as she watches her friend place her books onto her desk.

"Umm," She stands there, looking down at her books and adjusts them a few times on her desk before turning around to face the blonde. "Shakes?" Santana inquires with a tilt of her head and a quirked eyebrow.

"Please." Brittany waves her off before pushing herself up from the bed. "Like we'd ever go to Carmel's and _not_ get milkshakes?" She incredulously stares at her friend, who finally gives in a chuckles with a shake of her head.

"Alright, let's go then." She motions them over to her bedroom door.

"Uh, one thing." Brittany interrupts their exit, turning around to face Santana and holds her hand out. "I tricked you." She smirks and raises an eyebrow, finally opening her hand to let the keys to her truck dangle from her fingers. "I said I was wondering if _you _wanted to drive." She winks and places the keys into Santana's not so willing hands and spins around triumphantly.

"Brittany, when did you get here?" Aunt Linda asks as she walks out of the kitchen, nearly running into the bouncing blonde.

"Oh, hey Miss Linda." She waves, smile on her lips and tosses a glance over her shoulder to find Santana right behind her with a raised eyebrow. "Just dropped in." Linda smirks when she sees that glint in Brittany's eye, the one that looks so similar to the one she'd have back when the girls were younger and up to something.

"I see." The older woman comments, looking over the cheerleader and to her niece, who gives her a shoulder shrug. "Well, I was just about to…"

"Actually," Santana jumps in before her aunt can sucker the blonde into some sort of 'family bonding' ritual she's most likely going to make up on the spot. "Britts and I were on our way out." She jingles the blonde's keys for emphasis.

"Yeah," Brittany giggles out as she whips her hair to one side. "I'm giving Santana here some pointers on how to not break your truck." She explains with amusement, getting a quirked eyebrow in response from the older Lopez.

"In that case," Linda moves aside and motions for them to continue on their way out. "By all means, take her with you." The two share a laugh and Santana crinkles her nose at the interaction, but follows her friend through the hall and towards the front door. "Will you be home for dinner?" Aunt Linda calls out before they step outside, getting the girls to stop.

"Uh…" Santana turns to Brittany, unsure of how long the girl planned on keeping them out.

"Well, I was actually gonna see if you wanted to grab a burger afterwards." The blonde tells her friend, quietly, just between them but obviously Aunt Linda hears this.

"Oh," The dark haired girl drawls out, nodding slowly at the offer. "Sure, I guess. I mean," She looks back to her aunt. "Is it cool?" Aunt Linda half jerks her head back and half tilts it, seeing as this is the first time since Santana has been here that she is asking if something is 'cool' for her to do.

"I'll see you later Santana." She waves them off once more, watching them giggle and smile their way out of the house leaving her to wonder if coming to Knox is actually doing things for her brother's daughter.

"So," Santana says once they are inside of Brittany's pick-up, rests one hand onto the steering wheel, while she guides the key into the ignition with the other. "We hittin' up Carmel's for shakes now and burgers later?" She asks, figuring this is Brittany's game plan. "Because they're probably gonna think we're fat asses." She comments with a laugh, getting a small giggle from the blonde beside her.

"Honestly," The dancer lets out as Santana pulls out onto the south service road from Aunt Linda's driveway. "I just kind of made that part about the burgers up." She grins when she receives a confused look from the girl driving.

"Wait, so, I'm not getting food?" She questions in mock disapproval and shock, making Brittany shake her head with laughter.

"No, I mean," The blonde stammers, tucking some hair behind her ears and watching on proudly as Santana correctly shifts gears. "We can totally get burgers if you want." She assures the shorter girl that she fully intends of providing her with food. "I just, your aunt wanted to know if you'd be home for dinner and, well, I just ," She fiddles with the ring on her middle finger and turns her head, letting her eyes fall to the space between them. "This morning, what I said on the way to school…"

"No need to explain." Santana waves her off as she fidgets in her seat, there's so much uncertainty in Brittany's tone that it's kind of making the Latina uncomfortable with what may come next.

"But I want to, because, I feel like I didn't say what I wanted to." The blonde pushes, finally lifting her eyes to watch Santana try to focus on the road, and judging from the other girl's silence, Brittany decides to continue. "I know that you just want to go home." The cheerleader says straight forwardly. "But, I want you to stay here." She admits quietly and her hand falls to the tiny space separating their bodies. "You were, like," She breathes out a bashful giggle. "My favorite part of summer." Her hand lifts from the bench seat and up to cover her face when Santana sends her a quirked eyebrow and a smirk. The blonde's smile, however, slowly fades, leaving a tiny sadness in her eyes. "I know you didn't plan your last year of high school to be spent here, and if you had a choice you'd go back, but," Brittany shrugs her shoulders and thoughtfully chews on her bottom lip. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm happy you're here." She grins, once again with a tad of happiness to her voice and she looks right at Santana. "That you finally came back."

Santana finds herself smiling, it's soft, but it's still there and she glances over to the blonde who has just expressed herself. Turning onto Marlboro, the dark haired girl can't help but wonder how the cheerleader can allow herself to be so vulnerable, especially to someone like her. Brittany's right, if she were given the opportunity to go back to Boston right this second, she'd hop on the first flight, train or automobile.

Yet, here is Brittany, the girl from up the road also in her last year of high school in a town she's known her whole life, with people that she's seen pretty much every day. But, here she is, showing Santana how to properly drive a stick shift, while on the way to Carmel's to get burgers and shakes.

"You know," Santana clears her throat. "I think I'm finally getting the hang of this." And just as she makes this announcement, the truck jerks and squeaks making the shorter girls cheeks burn a crimson red and the blonde to let out tickling laughter.

* * *

><p>It's lunchtime at school and Santana finds herself in the company of Quinn, which is really nothing new. Kurt has joined them and along with him comes girl Asian who she met the other night at Stars Lake. As the trio discusses the party and various upcoming events dealing with everything football and cheerleading, Santana silently listens and looks around the quad at the rest of the student body.<p>

With an apple in her hand, she considers her time spent here and how much longer she's got. It's only been about a month or so since she arrived here in the Pleasantville-esque town of Knox City but it most definitely feels longer. At least, she thinks, Thanksgiving is coming up soon and perhaps she'll be seeing the wonderful lights and smell the dingy scent of her hometown for the holiday. It's most certainly something to look forward to. Knox City, she is beginning to feel, is a place that can only be endured in small doses. Sure, it was a blasty blast back when she was a kid and didn't understand the concept of time. But, being forced to become one of these picture perfect, cookie cutter kids is not something she is ready or willing to turn in to.

"Hey Fabgay," A guys voice comes from a few feet away and the table of four outcasts look over to find Finn Hudson and a few of his jock friends smirking as they walk on by. "The one woman welcoming committee." One of the football guys says and gets a bunch of laughs from Finn and his teammates. "I'm sure she gave you the whole tour new girl." He winks over at Santana and judging by the tone of his voice, she gathers that this is supposed to be some kind of sexual innuendo, and horrible one at that.

"That doesn't make any sense." Kurt shakes his head, joining in with the furrowed brow look with the other girls at the lunch table.

"Probably 'cause you're a big gay-mo there Hummel." One of the beefier guys steps forward and limps his wrist after he speaks, setting the rest of his stupid group of meat heads into a frenzy.

"Get lost Karofsky." Quinn spits out with a crinkle of her nose. The boys actually do what they are told, but not without dispensing a few high fives between one another and laughing even louder as they walk away. Santana watches on, her face reading not only disgust but slight confusion, as the boys walk away. If she is going to do something worth anything while she is here in Knox, it's going to be putting one Finn Hudson in his place.

"Hey guys." Brittany greets, getting the group of kids to lift their attention towards the other end of the table and over at the head cheerleader standing there.

"Uh," Santana looks from the blonde and to the rest of the group before settling her gaze back onto the girl standing beside her. "Hey, Britt." She smiles back. The other kids continue to stare back at the girl whose smile makes the sun look dim, all wondering what has driven Brittany to grace them with her presence.

"Mind if I join you?" The tall blonde asks with a tilt of her head, her gaze flickering over the half dozen pair of eyes staring back at her. "Figured we could talk about this weekend." She explains, slowly taking the spot beside Santana who has shuffled over to make room. "Ya know, April's Rhodehouse." They all 'oh' and nod, remembering their impending plans for this upcoming weekend.

"Well, Quinn's gonna drive me, and Tina and Mike are gonna take their own truck." Kurt tells the newest edition to their lunch table.

"Yeah," Mike chimes in, joining the group and taking a spot behind Tina so he is straddling the bench. "So we both got room for one more, you two," He points between Brittany and Santana. "Could each hop into our trucks." He offers, getting a sweet smile from his girlfriend Tina, obviously adoring his process of elimination and problem solving skills.

"Oh," Brittany nods, taking in all of this information slowly as she unscrews the cap to her water bottle. "Well," She shrugs, sipping a little bit of water. "How's 'bout I just drive me and Santana." She suggests. "I mean, it's just out on the other side of Knox, right?" She gets a few nods and 'yeah' from Kurt and Quinn. "Doesn't make sense for ya'll to come out to south service just to pick us up and then have to drive us all the way back home." Everyone seems to agree with the blonde's thinking and are quick to nod.

"Sounds perfect." Quinn notes as she leans forward to point over at Kurt. "You're gonna sleep over after right?" She asks him and is answered with a huge smile from the boy. "Good, last time your dad gave me a sobriety test." Santana and Brittany snicker at this information, while Tina laughs out loud, even throwing her head back for emphasis at the ridiculousness.

"Wait a second," Santana interrupts after realization of a possible dry night out this may turn into. "Are all of you 'good Christian folk' refraining from alcohol consumption on our night out?" She asks with a quirked eyebrow and glances over at the Asian twins and then Kurt. "I mean, less for you the more for me." She shrugs and crosses her arms loosely over her chest.

"Actually Santana," Tina breaks the background chit chat of fellow classmates walking by their table. "Mike and I usually set up some cocktails in the parking lot at April's." She explains getting a semi interested head tilt from the dark haired girl who gets a nudge from Brittany.

"Yea, I mean," Mike adds. "April's is actually pretty loose with I.D. and stuff. It's super easy to get your drink on there." She wriggles his eyebrows and the rest of the group of usual April's Rhodehouse guests nod along with his statement.

"That's cool." Brittany again softly digs her elbow into Santana's arm and smiles at the girl.

"This way, you get to have a good time." Quinn gently interjects and then shrugs her shoulders. "You dance your ass off."

"And the booze is out by the time you leave." Kurt claps with a bright grin getting an affirming nod from his cousin.

"Fan-fucking-tastic." Santana smiles giving them all an approving nod. She sure as shit wasn't planning on finally getting a good night out and not being able to get a little bit of liquor in her system.

The day goes on as it usually has for the past month or so. Go to school, get through the day and try hard not to punch some of these hick town kids in the junk. Santana must admit, she feels slightly proud of herself for having not jumped Finn Hudson as he makes his way out of his Math class. His class is right across from her History class and she just knows that if she got him at the right angle, she could wipe that stupid smug right off of his stupid, pudgy face.

She even shared this information with her social worker, the ever antibacterial hand sanitizer scented Miss Pillsbury. Though, the older woman did not seem as impressed with her control over physical abuse towards the boy and rather went on to question her 'bad thoughts'. Yesterday was the day Santana decided that some things were meant to be kept inside her own little mind.

Before she knows it, it's April's Rhodehouse night, or as Brittany has been putting it, 'Lebanese night'. But regardless, as she prepares her outfit for the evening she is finally given a good enough reason for having packed her black fedora. She smirks as she pulls it off of her desk, brushes away nonexistent dust and sets it perfectly onto her bed. She seriously has the perfect skin tight dress to go with this, but, as she turns to the indent in the wall also known as a closet, there is a knock at her door.

"Here." Aunt Linda holds her hand out, something new and shiny, instantly peaking Santana's interest and away from the world's smallest closet.

"What's this?" The younger girl asks with a quirked eyebrow as she takes the object from her aunt. Her fingers play with the plastic casing that she can tell is at least in the shape of a cell phone. A very outdated, but apparently new cell phone.

"A motorcycle." Linda deadpans, placing her hands on her hips, staring blankly at her niece.

"Sarcasm does _not_ suit you Aunt Lee." Santana mocks with a chuckle as she shakes her head and flips the cell phone open to gaze upon the unused buttons and unscratched screen.

"I put my number in there, to the house and of course Sherriff Hummel's direct line." She explains to the girl, tapping the phone with the tip of her finger while Santana continues to stare down at it. "I don't like the idea of you being out and having no way to get in touch." She adds, pulling her hand back and loosely crosses her arms over her chest. Santana nods, bites on her bottom lip and smiles up at her aunt.

"You're not, like," Santana eyes her aunt up for a few seconds and sighs. "Gonna be checking up on me every five minutes, right?" She inquires, wondering if this is just some ploy for the woman to keep a tight leash on her whenever she leaves the house. Linda chuckles and waves her niece off.

"Please, I have better things to do than to worry about my favorite niece." She laughs out softly, and before she turns back to the kitchen she winks at Santana. "Have a good time sweetheart." Linda calls out as she walks towards the sink.

Santana stares down at the Motorola circa 2002 and half smiles. As she walks back over to her bed and tosses the new yet not so new cellular device beside her fedora, she thinks back to when her mom gave her a cell phone. It was the typical post divorce gift that parents give their kids in order to out-do the other parent. She was fourteen and her father had just given her her first pair of Jimmy Choos, despite her mother's vehement protests.

It was actually one of those no-frills kind of cell phone. In fact, it was a flip phone just like the one Aunt Linda has just given her. But, Santana soon realized the way her parents were quick to up the ante when she wanted something. Soon enough, Santana had a Blackberry _and _a Sidekick3 in her hands as she walked down the streets in her Jimmy Choos.

She is taken out of her self induced flashback at the sound of the device ringing some obnoxious ring. With a roll of her eyes, she motions to grab it from her bed, figuring its Aunt Linda wanting to make sure it works. But, she is actually surprised when another familiar name appears across the screen.

"He…hello?" Santana says into the mouth piece after quickly flipping it open to answer. An airy giggle greets her and she can't fight the smile that graces her lips.

"Don't pretend like you didn't see my name come up on your retro phone." It's Brittany's playful voice and it's kind of hard not to giggle along with her. "I saw your aunt at the store when she got it for you." She explains easily enough and Santana nods. "I practically set up the whole thing for her, or, well, for you." She stammers. "There's something to be said about some people and electronics." Santana smirks, bites her lip and slowly walks over towards her bedroom door to close it.

"So, are we gonna become those friends who don't see one another anymore?" She jokes. "Now that we can be lazy and talk on the phone." Both girls laugh, and the feeling and sound of their laughs mixing together is so comfortable that Santana falls to her bed.

"Like that ever stopped us before." Brittany points out causing Santana to pause in her laughter.

"We didn't have cell phones back then B." She reminds the blonde, and then blushes a bit when she realizes how she has just called Brittany by one of her many nicknames.

"Don't tell me you forgot." Brittany sighs, her words coming out so softly and Santana thinks she can detect a hint of disappointment. She shuts her eyes tightly, brings her first to her forehead and then smiles wildly into the phone.

"I'm pretty sure that mine is still hidden somewhere in here." She tells the blonde, sitting straight up in the bed and looks around the room curiously. Brittany laughs and Santana is sure she can hear some movement on the other side of the line, making her wonder if her friend is looking for hers as well. "Unless Aunt Lee found it and disposed of it like she did with everything that was cool."

That last part was a lie because Aunt Linda was actually the one who picked up the coolest thing ever. When Santana was about eight years old, Linda greeted the Lopez's out by the driveway just as she did every summer. But this time she had a very special gift for her favorite little niece. It was the greatest thing that Santana had ever seen and the best part about it was that it came in a pair. It was a walkie talkie and her aunt made sure to sneak one to the little blonde girl next door so that when they weren't together they could still be close and tell their stories.

"Best gift ever." Brittany breathes out and Santana nods in agreement.

"Yeah." She verbalizes and then shakes her head back to the present. "So, uh, you ready for tonight?"

"Totally." Santana can tell by the way her friend says this that she is completely beaming.

"What'd you tell Mrs. Mayor?" She asks, figuring that being Brittany, she's probably told everyone and her mother where she is planning on going tonight.

"I don't tell my parents everywhere I go." Brittany assures her, but there's something in the way she says it that makes Santana believe otherwise.

"Right, well," The dark haired girl picks up the hat still sitting on her bed and turns it around in her hands and smiles. "I should probably start getting ready."

"We aren't leaving for another hour and a half." The blonde points out with a chuckle.

"I know it may seem as though I wake up lookin' this smoking," Santana states factually but with a little smirk on her lips. "And I do, but sometimes you gotta put in a little effort." She winks and then turns a shade of red when she realizes she's just winked at someone who can't even see her. "Yeah, so," She clears her throat and stands up from the bed in a way to distract her from this random embarrassed feeling. "I'm gonna shower and stuff."

She pretty much hangs up the phone before Brittany can even respond, but in that moment, she's kind of okay with that. Tossing the phone onto her bed she turns and grabs her towel that is hanging on the back of her bedroom door and makes her way towards the bathroom. There's a definite possibility that tonight is going to be a great escape from the life she has been living thus far in Texas, away from the south service road, Aunt Linda's overly watchful eye, and complete and utter boredom.

Two hours later and a text message on her not so new cell phone from the blonde next door, Santana is slowly walking her way up the Pierce's mostly paved driveway. It was Brittany's request and suggestion that whenever Santana was ready that she just come on over and then they'd go. Not seeing anything wrong with the idea, Santana beautified herself, tossed on her black vest with no shirt underneath and topped off her wonderful look with her fedora. Something about a hot smokin' woman with a little mystery she always thought was a super easy way to get some very much needed attention. Particularly, attention between her legs.

But, here she is now, walking towards Brittany's powder blue truck in the dim light of the evening wondering if she is supposed to wait outside or ring the doorbell. Something about going up the Pierce porch and ringing the doorbell doesn't have the same feel as it did when they were little girls, calling one another out to play. Being a teenager and calling on someone via knock, doorbell or even car horn, usually descends into more adult and more romantic material.

These thoughts make her roll her eyes at even herself. It's not like she and her childhood buddy are going out on some extravagant date and she has to suck up the courage to put on fake smiles for the parental units. In fact, she is pretty certain she hasn't even been on an actual date, not just this super friends only kind of get together so these sudden 'insecurities' are kind of moot.

With a deep breath and short slew of expletives aimed at herself, she stalks over towards the steps and reaches a hand out to the screen door leading to the Pierce porch. But, as she pulls it open, the front door to Brittany's house opens and the blonde herself appears with a bright and amused smile on her face.

"I was wondering how long you were gonna stand out here." She laughs out and then fully steps onto the porch to close the door behind her. "Wow." Brittany says with surprise and a raised eyebrow. Santana can see her blue eyes, even in the barely there light thanks to the lanterns on the porch, as they scan her body up and down. "You look…"

"Yeah well," Santana steps down and pulls the screen door open for Brittany, trying to look at anything and everything but the lingering stare from the girl next door. "You, uh, I keep forgetting that you own regular clothes." She comments in a smaller voice, letting her eyes graze over the taller girl's body as she walks down the steps.

"I got the directions from Quinn." The cheerleader informs her friend who is walking slightly behind her. "I told her we'd meet them there." She says over her shoulder and Santana nods, making her way to the passenger side of Brittany's truck. Right when she revs the engine, the passenger side visor flips up and she can see in the dark Santana rummaging through her purse. "Need light?"

"Yeah." Santana hums out and then sighs out in triumph as she brings up her lip gloss into the shimmering light shining inside the cabin of the powder blue pickup truck. "Never leave the house without it." She notes, sending a wink in the blonde's direction before turning her attention back towards her own reflection in the visors small mirror.

"You have nice lips." Brittany practically breathes out. Santana's hand stops moving, she quirks an eyebrow but all of that only lasts a hot second. She's pretty much used to people staring at her and telling her that she has lovely assets. Though, truth be told it was usually in the middle of hooking up, but a compliment is a still a compliment she reasons.

"Uh," She blushes, only a little bit, shakes her head and chuckles. "Well, this is actually a lip plumping gloss." She explains, holding the applicator out for Brittany to see. "It would totally make your lips look all hot and sultry too." She tells the blonde, turning herself a little more towards the driver's seat. "Here, try it." Brittany immediately takes the offered lip gloss and pulls her visor down, a wide smile on her face just like she used to have as a kid when she got candy. "It's feel a little weird but it will make your lips look, like, super kissable." Brittany smacks her lips together and slowly twists the cap back on, a smaller smile gracing her lips.

"Thanks." She says, and hands the lip gloss over the dark haired girl beside her. "How does it look?" The cheerleader wonders as she flips her head in Santana's direction making her blonde hair flip behind her. Santana laughs a little because she notices how Brittany's lips pout when some of her blonde hair sticks to her lips.

"Ah," She shuffles closer, lifting her arm up and resting her elbow on the back of the bench seat in the blonde's truck. "Happens to me all the time." Santana winks as she slowly lowers a finger down towards Brittany's lips to help her remove the hair sticking to her mouth. Brown eyes watch carefully as a tanned finger hooks a few stray strands of hair, unaware of the sparkling blue eyes watching the way her lips pout in a smile as she removes the offending hairs.

Half behind a sheer white curtain stands Annie Pierce, to her full height of five foot seven, holding the curtain back ever so slightly with one hand and her cell phone in the other. In the background, Mr. Pierce sits comfortably in his arm chair enjoying a sports game, cheering on as the Ole Miss football teams scores a touchdown. The cabin of her daughters powder blue pickup is lit up perfectly for her to see the scene of her daughter and her neighbor's niece in a rather compromising position. Her lips purse, her eyes squint and she simply continues to stare.

"What do we know about her?" She asks in an all too serious tone, but one her husband has grown very accustom to over the years. She watches as the girls giggle, so it seems, and the shorter girl shimmy back to her respective side of the bench seat. The lights turn off, leaving her in the dark of anymore movements and facial expressions going on between them. "I asked a question." She says in a louder voice, giving up on her spying and spins around to find her husband staring at her in confusion.

"I'm sorry dear, did you say something?" Joe Pierce inquires, sending his wife a polite smile. Mrs. Pierce rolls her eyes, ever so gracefully, and moves away from the window.

"The Lopez girl." Annie repeats in short.

"Oh, Santana." Joe smiles as he says her name. He still thinks of her as the little dark haired girl making mud pies with his daughter. "Must be nice for Linda to have her staying with her." He comments before sipping some scotch and water.

"I wonder why she's staying with her." Annie notes, taking a seat on the couch beside her husband's arm chair and lifts her cell phone to open her phone book. "A seventeen year old girl moves in with her aunt during her senior year just cause?" She shakes her head and opens up a new text message under Terri, her assistant's name. "Doesn't make much sense." She says the last part to herself because she already knows she has lost Joe's interest once the game returns back from commercials.

After a twenty five minute drive, small talk here and there and some singing to the radio, Santana picks up Brittany's cell phone to get the rest of the directions Quinn had texted her. She scrolls through what they have already done and finally gets up to where they are now and then she points to the right.

"Turn right here." She tells the blonde. "According to Q's direction, it should be up here on the right after the first light." She explains and then glances up to find the first light blinking ahead of them.

"What the hell is this place?" Santana blurts out, eyes wide and jaw slacken as they pull into a secluded parking lot. But, it's not really secluded, not in the least.

"April's Rhodehouse." Brittany answers, saying it as though it's the fanciest place ever in existence. She glances over to see a smile of appreciation come over Santana's face and she nods to herself. "This is amazing." She comments, her own eyes also wide, sparkling with the blinking lights of the bars sign flickering.

"Look who finally showed up." Mike nudges Quinn as he hands a red solo cup to Tina. The blonde turns her head and sees Brittany's truck pull up and into a spot a few spots over.

"Guess they got started without us." Santana points out, noticing the red cups in the hands of Asian fusion, Quinn and her cousin, Liza with a 'K'. "Good thing I always come prepared." She announces before happily pulling out the rest of the vodka she had bought when she first rolled into town. Santana shows it off as though it's a prized possession and Brittany playfully rolls her eyes and giggles with a shake of her head. "Quick sip?" She raises an eyebrow and smirks. "And by sip I mean chug a little." She winks getting yet another laugh out of the blonde. "And by a little I mean a lot."

"You're a little party girl aren't you?" The cheerleader wonders with amusement as she turns the ignition off. Santana shrugs, unscrews the cap and brings the bottle to her lips. "Hey." Brittany loudly calls out and reaches for the bottle just as Santana is in mid tilt. "Ladies first, no?" She winks and easily brings the bottle to her lips, taking a decent swig. Santana's eyebrows raise and her jaw drops.

"Wow, country girl knows how to drink eh?" She says with a laugh. Brittany nods with a smile as she lowers the bottle, making a tiny face as the vodka burns all the way down. "Color me impressed Britt Britt." She cheers and reaches for the bottle for a sip for herself.

"Ugh." Brittany shivers and sticks her tongue out, trying to ride out the potent taste of alcohol dancing around her mouth which only makes Santana laugh through her drinking.

"Stop." The dark haired girl whines as she lifts her hand to wipe her chin where some vodka had dribbled out. "You're gonna make it come out of my nose." She nudges the blonde's arm and the two simply giggle at the possibility of liquor coming out of Santana's nose. A knock at the passenger side window interrupts their little world and they both turn to find a smiling Quinn wave and mouth 'hey'.

"I thought you guys got lost." Quinn admits as she opens the door wider for Santana.

"No," Brittany says as she comes around the back end of the truck to meet her two friends on the other side. "This one just took a day and a half getting ready." She points over at Santana as they walk over towards the back of Mike's truck where a little amateur bartending is going on. The dark haired girl rolls her eyes as she hands over her less than half filled bottle of vodka over the football player for him to make her some delicious cocktail.

"Hey," Santana starts, flipping her hair in the process. "This is my first night out since I got here and I needs to get me some." She explains and reaches out for her newly filled red cup, garnering an amused eyebrow raise and smirk from Quinn.

As she sips her drink her eyes scan over the very full parking lot. There are pickup trucks as far as the eye can see and just like she and her temporary posse, there are groups of twinks in their skinny jeans and fashionable scarves. Just beyond the group of Justin Beibers is a small collection of big, broody guys who keep calling each other 'girlfriend' and playing with one another's beards. If there is one thing she appreciates in Texas, it's the way the bears and their cubs don't wear fishnet tank tops like they do at the bars back at home. Something about all that hair, though a nice reminder as to why she loves the smoothness of a woman's naked body, always seemed to curb her appetite.

She can hear Brittany, Quinn and Kurt talking amongst themselves behind and next to her. Along with Asian fusion being all cute and talking about getting their dance on, she seems rather intrigued at the scene of the parking lot at April's Rhodehouse. Back in Boston, especially at the places she spent most of her nights; it wasn't uncommon to see to guys making out against the back of their expansive car, two girls sneaking off into the backseat of said car or even just a little puppy love hand hold between a same sex couple.

But, she realizes that since she's been here in Knox, minus Kurt of course, she has yet to actually see anything like this since her arrival. It's not to say that back in Boston, it's all same sex couples walking up and down the street manhandling one another, but it's most definitely a lot more diverse. She supposes it makes sense though. The six of them have just driven twenty five minutes out to the middle of nowhere, which says a lot since they drove _from_ the middle of nowhere. And now, they are standing in a parking lot with over three dozen strangers, in the most secluded place Santana is sure she has ever been in and there is this diverse community. Well, diverse in the fact that it's completely the opposite of Knox City's Main Street.

"Are we doing seconds, or just heading in?" Mike breaks her inner, self conversation and she glances down into her almost empty cup. With a breath, she tosses the rest of her drink back handing over her now very empty red cup.

"How about we all take a shot?" She grins and reaches around him for the liquor bottle standing up right in the back of his truck.

"I think you better count me out." Brittany shakes her head and waves her hands after Santana takes her shot and tries to hand the bottle her way. The dark haired girl swallows, arches an eyebrow and smirks.

"And you call me uptight." She chuckles, but Brittany just brushes it off easily and smiles.

"Well, I don't think your aunt would be too happy if I was driving you around intoxicated." The blonde points out and watches Santana hand the bottle over the Kurt.

"Hey, it's cool." Santana shrugs and sends her an innocent wink. "More for me." Quinn passes up on the extra shot as well, for which Santana takes both of theirs and that's what finishes up the bottle.

Along with a few of the others from the parking lot, the random group of misfits from Knox City makes their way towards the front entrance of April's Rhodehouse. The sign outside hangs high above the front door in big, bright, neon purple letters. They wait on line, about ten people back, behind boy and boy, man with man, two women, a young college aged guy with his hag and a straight couple. The bouncer at the door is a big, burly man with a huge smile on his face as he greets various patrons who Santana can only assume are regulars.

"Hey guys." The man at the door greets the group of teenagers. "Glad to see you back so soon." He waves Quinn, Kurt, Mike and Tina in. Quinn tells him that Santana and Brittany are with her and he nods with a smile telling them to enjoy.

When they walk over the threshold of the bar, Santana can't faintly hear the bouncer greeting a couple that must have been behind them with such enthusiasm and she suddenly feels right at home. She remembers the places back home and how everyone at the gay bar by her knew her name. It was so easy for her to cut the line and walk right in. But, there were definitely different reasons for her getting the V.I.P. treatment. She made sure she got to know the bouncer, her girlfriend, the bartender, his girlfriend the DJ and of course the owner in her own little special way.

Colored lights are streaming the dance floor, strobe lights are going off in the corner and music is bumping all around. Couples are cuddling up to one another by the bar, against the wall by the DJ booth and dancing everywhere. Friends are dancing in tight knit circles, bartenders on both sides are pouring drinks, doing shots with customers and drag queens are walking around trying to sell shots in test tubes.

"So," Kurt sidles up beside Santana, claps his hands joyfully and looks out to the wonderfulness that is April's Rhodehouse. "What do you think?" Santana raises an eyebrow, glances around and smirks.

"It smells like," Her nose crinkles and she looks over at the boy next to her. "Marlboro Lights and wine coolers in here." He chuckles and gives her a golf clap.

"Really?" Brittany comes up on her other side, bright smile on her face as her eyes dance around the bar. "I think it smells like glitter and grape soda." She tells her friends who eye her up curiously, only she is cheering a group of guys dancing a few feet away to pay them any mind.

Santana and Kurt share quizzical stares, but can't help but laugh when Brittany lets out a big cheer for the dancers before her. She instantly runs over to Mike and Tina and pulls them onto the dance floor. Quinn steps in between Kurt and Santana, letting her arms drape around both of their shoulders and squeezes.

"Let's dance kids." She tells the both of them. Kurt eagerly allows himself to be dragged out and join the masses of rhythmically gifted bodies, but Santana steps away from the blonde's grasp.

"Actually, I'm gonna walk around." The dark haired girl says over the pumping music and motions over towards the bar on the left side of the place. "Maybe get a drink." Quinn and Kurt shrug and nod, waving their friend off as she turns to head in the direction she pointed.

This place may be a little farther than she would like, but it's got its charm, and that's more than enough reason for Santana to take inventory. Maybe she can find some calm in her boring day to day life back over at Aunt Linda's. If possible, she may even be able to make this some kind of weekly occurrence for her to actually stay sane while she's here.

With her flirt smirk in place, she turns towards the bar and leans seductively onto it. She quirks an eyebrow over at the bartender who has her April's Rhodehouse, way too tight tank top on and the girl smiles with a head nod that she'll be right over. As she waits, she turns her body ever so slightly and scans over the dance floor. It seems that gay bars in Texas are just the same as the ones back home, safe for the cowboy boots and flannel shirts.

On the far side of the dance floor she spots Quinn and Kurt vogueing to some Nicki Minaj song, while Tina, Mike and Brittany seem to be in some impromptu dance off with a small gang of gym obsessed gay guys. A small smile tugs at the corners of her mouth as she watches Brittany move effortlessly to the music. She remembers when she was younger and she would spend hours upon hours watching from her bedroom window simply watching the blonde gracefully move around her bedroom. How she could hear the faint sound of music, whether it was something classical, something rock or anything hip hop, Brittany could move to anything with a beat. And apparently, she still can.

"What can I get you beautiful?" The brunette from behind the bar asks, her southern accent cuts through her flashback and brings her back to the present. She turns herself back towards the bar and purses her lips to their full plumpness.

"I was thinking a beer." Santana tells the girl, leaning back a little from the bar as though she is mulling over the options available to her.

"How's 'bout a beer and a shot? On me?" The girl winks and turns to grab a bottle before Santana can even give her that surprised but knowing grin. "You're new here." The bartender says and Santana has to lean forward to hear her.

"Is it that obvious?" Santana asks with slight curiosity. She was pretty sure she dressed the part perfectly for this event. "What's your name?" She inquires as she watches the girl on the other side of the bar set down her beer and two shot glasses.

"Hope." She tells the dark haired girl with the cute fedora on. Santana smiles and reaches for the full shot beside her beer.

"Santana." She offers her name even though Hope has yet to ask for it. They grin at one another, lift their shot glasses and press them together. "Cheers." With a wink, she tosses back her shot of what she can taste if a healthy helping of Jack Daniels. She fights the urge to make a face, seeing as she still has nightmares of her past relationship with the beverage. "Thanks." She smiles gratefully, sets down the now empty shot glass and takes a swig of her beer.

"So, Santana." Hope says her name in a lower octave and leans over the bar so she doesn't have to shout so much to be heard. "What's a pretty girl like you doing in a place like this all alone?" She raises an eyebrow and giggles when Santana smirks at her.

"Who says I'm alone?" Santana fakes offense and peels at the label of her Budweiser bottle. Hope glances down at the bottle in the other girl's hand, chuckles slightly and then looks back up to those brown eyes.

"I can tell by your sexy accent that you're not from Texas sweetheart." Hope begins to explain. "By the way your fingers are tearin' apart that beer label, I can sense your need for," She bites her lower lip and leans a little closer. "Some extracurricular activities." Santana grins and her eyebrows rise a bit. She didn't realize how hot and naughty these Texas chicks could be.

"Do you flirt with _all_ of your customers?" Santana wonders aloud, letting her bottom lip play with the rim of her beer bottle.

"Only the sexy ones." Hope says hotly and Santana is sure she just felt her warm breath hit her face.

"Hey Hope!" A guys voice from all the way down the end of the bar calls and they both look over to see him hanging over the bar waving her down.

"Better get back to work." Santana winks and cheers her drink in the air towards the bartender. Hope blows a kiss through the air towards Santana and heads on down to the guy who is flagging her down.

There's really nothing like a free drink no matter where it comes from Santana thinks. As she sucks down her beer she turns around to look for the group she came with. Three songs or so have passed since she came up to the bar, but all of those kids are still out there doing their own thing. Quinn and Kurt seemed to have joined in with Mike and Tina having their own little dance circle, but she notices she can't spot the other blonde she came with.

"Hey ya'll." A tiny, slightly high pitched voice comes through the speakers and over the dance heavy music. "Welcome to another Saturday night here at April's Rhodehouse!" The woman announces and the crowd cheers excitedly. "April here," She makes herself known and Santana is actually impressed that there is an actual 'April' to go along with April's Rhodehouse. "How are ya'll doin' tonight?" April asks the crowd and everyone goes wild, cheering her on as though she is the best thing in the world. Santana reasons that to most of them, this April character probably is the best thing to happen to their gay Texas lifestyle. "Don't forget to give our ladies with the jell-o shots some love and our fellas with the body shots some tongue." Boys and men all around the room go wild for the last comment and Santana snorts at the openness and acceptance that is April's. "Now let's get our 80's dance party on. DJ!" As her voice cuts out, a dance style of Whitney Houston's 'I Wanna Dance with Somebody' comes busting through the speakers and everyone and anyone on the dance floor goes wild. Even a bunch of people from the bar drag their friends, significant others and even strangers out to dance beneath the giant, sequined, shiny shoe dangling from the ceiling.

A flash of blonde from the corner of her eye causes Santana to turn her attention. She finally finds Brittany, who apparently went to the ladies room, and is now being approached by some scary looking woman with a 1988 mullet and a thick flannel shirt on. She watches on as Brittany smiles politely at the woman who grabs her hand and points out to the dance floor. In all honesty, Santana's seen that type of woman back at the bars in Boston. She's dubbed the scary older lesbian who probably lives with her cats, only owns husky jeans and is not up on current women's hairstyles. This woman is also the kind of woman that preys on the young, lipstick lesbians and is more often than not turned down.

To her surprise, Brittany nods and brightly smiles back at the woman who then leads her cheerleading friend back out to the dance floor. Her head jerks back because never in her entire history of lesbianism has she ever seen the eighteen wheeler, mullet, cat loving lesbian snag a dance or even a smile from someone as beautiful as Brittany. She's actually considering that Disney has nothing on Texas and that April's Rhodehouse is the happiest place on earth. Her head shakes in surprise as she notices that Brittany is even holding back her awesome dance moves seeing as her dance partner lacks the ability to move to any kind of rhythm.

"There you are." A voice breaks her staring and she turns her head to find Quinn making her way over. "Are you gonna come and dance at all tonight?" The blonde asks as she turns to the other bartender behind the bar and signals for some water.

"Actually," Santana starts and completely forgets about Brittany and her dancing mullet friend. "I think the bartender is two seconds away from giving me her first born." She tells her friend and winks over in Hopes direction when the dark haired girl looks her way.

"Oh really?" Quinn arches one of her perfectly shaped eyebrows and smirks back at Santana. "So that's your type?" Santana swallows the rest of her beer, shakes her head and sets the bottle back down.

"I have only one type Fabray." She says, holding up one finger to emphasize what she is about to say. "And it's only gonna be about sex anyway." She shrugs her shoulders and puts on a bright smile for Hope when she heads back over to replenish Santana's now empty beer with a new one. "Cheers." She clinks her fresh beer bottle against her friend's plastic cup filled with water and takes a quick sip.

"Did you even pay for that?" Quinn asks in confusion.

"Please." Santana laughs out and wipes her lips with her thumb. "When you look this hot you don't pay for anything." She explains as though it should be common knowledge.

Quinn chuckles with a shake of her head, finishes off her water and motions back to the dance floor. Santana nods in understanding and turns her focus back to where she had seen Brittany dancing with the very manly, commercial truck driving woman earlier. She can't seem to find the dancing cheerleader anywhere but she is taken out of her search when there is a tap on her shoulder. Hope is standing beside her with a smile on her face.

"I thought you were here alone?" The slightly taller bartender asks and loosely crosses her arms over her chest as she leans against the bar. Santana tilts her head in question, but then figures that the girl must have seen her talking to Quinn.

"Oh," She motions with her hand over to where Quinn had been standing only moments ago. "I came with a group of friends, that blonde was one of them." She tells Hope who grins and then quirks an eyebrow. "She's straight though."

"What about the blonde who's been staring at your for the last fifteen minutes?" Hope juts her chin a little to the right and Santana follows her gaze finally finding where Brittany had gone off to. She catches the blonde's blue eyes, but only for a few short seconds before the cheerleader looks away and carries on her dance move contest with Mike.

"Oh, Brittany?" Santana asks with amusement and shakes her head as she turns to face the bartender. "Totally just a friend." She tells Hope, letting her body turn fully towards the brunette. "And totally straight."

"Ahh," Hope nods along with a cute smile. "If you say so." She winks at Santana and steps closer.

"So, you've been keeping an eye on me tonight?" She arches an eyebrow and licks her lips, the sure way to let Hope know she is completely and shamelessly flirting back.

"Maybe both." The bartender tilts her head and brings her index finger to Santana's collarbone and runs it over her tanned skin. "How much longer do I have to subtlely throw myself at you before you give me your number?" She asks in a low voice.

"This is you being subtle?" Santana playfully and flirtatiously giggles out. Hope bites her bottom lip, nods and hands over a napkin with her phone number on it along with her name.

"Not really." She leans forward so her lips are ghosting Santana's ear and she breathes out. "Call me sometime Santana, and I'll show you around town." She leans back and winks before spinning around and heading back to her post behind the bar.

With a triumphant smile, Santana finishes the rest of her beer, folds the napkin up neatly and tucks it into her bra. This trip to April's Rhodehouse seems to be just what she needed. If Hope's insanely obvious flirting and number stashed perfectly between Santana's breasts, this night is most definitely not a bust. In fact, the dark haired girl is pretty sure that Hope didn't mean she would show Santana around Texas.

Since she's got a decent buzz on, digits in her cleavage and the beautiful sound of some old school hip hop bumping from the speakers, Santana moseys her way on down the steps of the bar and towards the group of randoms she came here with. They all cheer when she arrives and Kurt even grabs her hands and pulls her towards him for some upbeat dancing.

For the first time since dancing around in the garage at Pierce Parts and Tires, Santana finds herself letting go along with the music. Her eyes close and she imagines that she is back home at some party in a lot with Puck and feels the alcohol dance along with her. But she's not in Boston in some back alley party where the music is coming through the speakers of someone's Escalade. The sound of Quinn's laugh over the music enters her ears, the way Kurt cheers them all on as they dance along the beer and liquor coated floor and the smell of Brittany's shampoo invades her senses. For the first time since dancing around in the garage at Pierce Parts and tires, she finds herself really smiling.

It's two in the morning when the group decides to call it a night. Quinn, Brittany and Mike have all sobered up and taken turns going to the bathroom after flushing their system with four cups of water each. Santana, Kurt and Tina wait patiently outside by the trucks as the other three make their way over. A familiar voice saying 'hello' causes Santana to open her eyes in curiosity. She smiles through her still semi drunken haze when she finds that the voice belongs to that of the hot, brunette bartender.

"Hey there." Santana greets the girl and pushes herself away from Mike's black pickup.

"You better call me for our date." Hope reminds the Latina before waving goodbye and heading off in the opposite direction.

"Date?" Kurt asks with a raised eyebrow in surprise. Santana rolls her eyes and crosses her arms loosely over her chest in her most non-threatening way.

"I don't do 'dates' Porcelain." She explains with disdain. "I'm more of a hit and quit it kind of chick." She tells him, giving her fingernails a quick once over with admiration of her daily filing.

"So then what was that?" Tina chimes in with a goofy, drunken smile on her face.

"What was what?" Brittany's voice comes from behind them and they turn around to see that Quinn and Mike are right there along with her.

"Santana's got a date with the cute bartender." Tina tells them as she moves closer to Mike and nuzzles into him.

"I thought you didn't date?" Quinn's head jerks back as she recalls the conversation she had with Santana back at Pierce Parts and Tires on the whole dating situation. With yet another eye roll and a sigh, Santana's arms fall to her sides and she looks over at Quinn.

"You're going on a date?" Brittany then jumps into the conversation. Santana's attention snaps to the tall blonde and watches as her head tilts in confusion with the question and how her fingers fumble around the keys on her key ring.

"Look," Santana makes eye contact with all of them, the best she can seeing as she can still taste the last shot of Jack she did with the bartender. "I don't go on dates. I go out with women and get my mack on if you all must know."

"So you're kind of a tramp?" Kurt says in a very non-insulting way and Santana nods and shrugs.

"I don't do labels either Rainbow Brite." Quinn, Tina and Mike laugh along with Santana at her little jab at Kurt while Brittany forces a tiny smile and heads towards her powder blue truck.

They say their goodnights and thank one another for a fun night out down at April's Rhodehouse, already planning to make a return next week. Quinn pulls out first, with Mike behind her and then Brittany's pickup behind his. The roads are empty seeing as it's late into the night, or early into the morning.

Santana rests her head against the passenger side window and closes her eyes with the faint sound of soft rock playing in the cabin of Brittany's truck. Most of the ride is silent, except for the random comments made by the blonde about how much fun the bar was and the random questions about the bartender that Santana pretty much leaves unanswered. The only sounds that come from the dark haired girl are grunts and hums to let Brittany know that she is listening and hears her but is not at all going to join in any kind of conversation.

When she opens her eyes, Santana can tell that they are on the south service road and about two minutes away from their houses. She sits up straight and removes her fedora, setting it in her lap and pops in a piece of gum for good measure. Hopefully Aunt Linda will be too tired and sleepy to try and give Santana a hard time and make her touch her nose with her fingers her breath out into her nose.

"Just pull into your driveway, I'll walk home." Santana tells the blonde as they come up to the Pierce's driveway.

"You sure?" Brittany asks as she presses on the gas, ready to do exactly what her friend said.

"Yeah." She nods and pulls her bag up to her lap. "The extra fresh air will wash away the smell of man on man action and the Cosmo some bitch spilled on my legs." Brittany lets out a light chuckle and nods as she turns ever so carefully into her driveway. She opens the door as soon as the truck comes to a halt and Brittany kills the engine. "Thanks, for, driving and shit." She glances over to the blonde who smiles back at her and nods.

"Of course." They grin back at one another and then Santana rolls her eyes at the awkward silent staring they are doing.

"Well, okay, goodnight Britt." She hops out of the car and waits for the soft 'goodnight' from the blonde before shutting the door and heads towards her aunt's house.

Still sitting in the driver's seat, Brittany turns her head and watches through the window as Santana slowly walks down her paved driveway and down to the dirt sidewalk until she vanishes behind the bushes. She lets out a sigh and then twists her lips as she pulls the keys from the ignition and jumps out of her truck.

* * *

><p>Terri Del Monaco makes her way up the steps of the Knox City Town Hall building and purposefully pushes the glass doors open. Her hands are filled with manila folders and multi colored files with a few choice post-its perfectly placed. She made sure to copy all of the papers and label them the exact way that Emma Pillsbury had. Her high heels click and clack against the marble floor of the town hall building as she makes her way towards the elevator and has to adjust the paper work to one arm to press the button. Within seconds the doors open and she eagerly enters, pressing the button that will take her up to the fourth floor and into the Mayor's office hallway.<p>

She knows she's late, but she didn't really have a choice. Emma Pillsbury had taken a much shorter lunch break, which is rather unusual seeing as the super, freakishly germaphobic woman takes about an hour or so to simply clean her afternoon snacks. But regardless, once Terri gets a request from the Mayor, it's as good as done if she wants to keep her job. Adjusting the bag hanging from her shoulder the best she can without dropping anything, she tries to tilt her wrist to check the time.

"You're late." The frigid voice of Annie Pierce comes to her ears before the doors even fully open.

"I'm sorry." Terri tries and quickly hands over the requested material when she sees the Mayor's hands reach out expectantly. "The neat freak must have changed her 'normal' routine." She rolls her eyes at the fact that the towns resident OCD citizen has gotten her on the Mayor's bad side.

"Is this everything?" The taller blonde questions while quickly thumbing through all of the papers in the files for a once over and then looks to the woman before her.

"Umm," Terri glances at the files and folders, recalling everything she saw that had 'Lopez, Santana' written. "Everything I could find." She nods, smiles and then follows Annie Pierce down a short hallway when the older woman spins on her heels and stalks towards her office. "If you don't mind me asking, Mrs. Mayor," Terri is hot on Mrs. Pierce's tail, eager to be in on whatever this new project is. "What's the scandal with this Lopez girl?" She innocently inquires as they enter the Mayor's office. "I mean, she just seems like a city girl who got shipped off to live with her aunt in the middle of nowhere for a few months. Almost like rehab." She thinks out loud even though it's mostly a thought to herself. "But a lot less Amy Winehouse and a little more Lindsay Lohan." She smirks at her talent for making offhanded pop culture references, but the stern, unamused look she receives from Mrs. Pierce changes her tune.

"It's a personal matter." Annie Pierce vaguely explains, getting a few small head nods from Terri and then a confused head tilt. "Are these all of Pillsbury's notes?" She asks, rifling quickly through the pages.

"Not all of them, most are just copies of her records sent from Boston." The assistant points out. "Linda Lopez is her aunt." Terri states but almost with a questioning air to it. Mrs. Pierce nods as she sets the folders and files perfectly on her desk. "Well then, she lives next door to you Mayor Pierce. Couldn't you just do some investigating the old fashion way?" Annie quirks an eyebrow, pauses her hands on the pages and glances up to the woman standing across from her desk.

"I would, but it seems my daughter has taken a liking to her." The Mayor points out with distaste.

"Well, Brittany is a good judge of character." The younger woman states. "I mean, she stopped hanging around the Fabray girl when she got in trouble a few years back." Mrs. Pierce chuckles and shakes her head as her eyes scan over a page in her hand.

"My daughter thinks there is good in everyone." Annie Pierce sighs out as though it is the most awful thing she could ever think or say about her own daughter.

"Isn't that, like, a good thing?" Terri wonders. "A very Christian way of thinking." She adds on a smile, proud of her responses in this conversation thus far.

"It's a foolish way of thinking." Her eyes squint as she reads the Social Workers perfect handwriting and sighs. "And this Santana Lopez has no place in my daughter's life." She says as she firmly places the piece of paper down.

Santana is standing just outside the market, not so patiently waiting for Aunt Linda to finish up inside and most likely shove heavy shopping bags into her hands. She adjusts the sunglasses she is ever so thankful for remembering during her frantic pack for Knox, and crosses her arms over her chest as she looks down the street. Her eyes roll and she narrows her stare at the group of boys with Knox City High School letterman jackets on, pushing and shoving one another, in some lame attempt to prove their 'manhood' or whatever reason guys do those things.

One in particular really makes her blood boil, he simply rubs her the wrong way, always has and she figures he always will. Luckily, before enough energy can conjure to the point where she can actually shoot lasers through her eyes, she senses someone behind her and a not so very welcoming 'hello'. Spinning around, she is pretty surprised to find Mrs. Pierce standing there with the fakest half smile she has ever seen.

"Umm," Santana tosses one more hate filled glance over her shoulder before turning her attention back to her new next door neighbor. "Hello?" She remembers Mrs. Pierce. Anyone who has ever met the woman would never forget her. That icy stare and that cold hard look in those blue eyes that were the complete opposite of her warm and uber charming daughter.

"What are you doing out here?" The blonde woman asks, looking up at the market sign above the shop that they are standing under. Brushing off her complete confusion, Santana sighs and points at the doors and she shakes her head.

"Aunt Linda's dragged me here to be her bag boy." She explains with disdain, though she does have to admit that Aunt Linda is one hell of a cook, so she really doesn't mind having to carry a few bags to the truck and into the house.

"How lovely of you." Mrs. Pierce's fakeness is so thick, Santana is sure she could cut it up and serve it with a big healthy cup of 'shut the fuck up'.

"Yeah, well, I try." She forces out, trying her best at a pleasant faux smile to match the one directed at her.

"I see you're all grown up." Annie points out and Santana can see the quirked eyebrow twitch, telling her this is conversation is going to be going in a whole other direction than she thought.

"Sure am." Bitch smile in full effect. This woman is playing some kind of game, Santana can smell that much. It's when Mrs. Pierce steps a little closer to her does she actually realize what the woman's angle is.

"You're good." Mayor Pierce notes, smile still completely intact, but the ice in her eyes as cold as ever. "The whole sweet girl thing you're trying to pull here." Santana's eyebrows furrow and her nose crinkles because, 'sweet girl', as if. "But see, I've read up on you." The older woman tilts her head and watches as confusion rakes over the smaller girls face.

"You don't know what you're talking about lady." Santana defends and when she tries to step back, the Mayor only steps forward.

"Brittany is a good girl." The older woman states.

"Yeah, she is." Santana agrees instantly.

"I'd like to keep it that way."

"Annie." Aunt Linda's voice comes out of nowhere, but Santana can't thank her enough for intruding for the first time in ever. "Oh, sorry, I mean Mayor." Linda jokes and Annie Pierce steps away from Santana, chuckling along with her neighbor.

"How are things?" The icy blonde asks as though she actually cares.

"Fine. Got stuck with this one for a school year." Linda hands her grocery bags to Santana and playfully wraps her arm over her shoulder.

"Yes, I was just telling Santana how wonderful it is to see her in Knox again." Annie lies through her teeth making Santana jerk her head back, completely insulted by this charade. But when the tall blonde flashes her once pearly whites at her, she merely bites her tongue and nods.

"Yeah, Mrs. Pierce," Santana chimes in with a smirk. "The one woman welcoming committee."

"Yes, well, I have to go." Mrs. Pierce interrupts their not so interesting conversation and points ahead of her towards her office building. "Meetings and such."

"Bye bye." Linda waves her off and quickly spins her and Santana in the opposite direction. "Ugh," Aunt Linda groans. "That woman grates on my nerves." The younger Latina grins and nods, agreeing with her aunt entirely. "It's a wonder that a girl like Brittany could come from a person like Annie Pierce."

"Word Aunt Lee." Santana adds her two cents. "Word."

"We're having meatloaf for dinner." Aunt Linda tells her niece.

"As fantastic as that sounds, I will not be home for dinner." She says as she shifts the bags in her hands to one side of her arms.

"Is that so?" The older woman questions with suspicion.

"Very much so." Santana nods and gives her aunt a sideways look. There's no way she can get away without telling her aunt where she's going or who she is going wherever with. And something tells her that even though she can usually be very blunt with her aunt, telling the woman that she going to be missing dinner to have a one night stand with some bartender she just met wouldn't really fly. "I'm going on a date." She lies innocently. It could totally be seen as a date from an outsider's perspective.

"A date?" Aunt Linda asks with surprise. "With who?"

"Well, I met this girl. I got her number. And we're going out." She gives the short hand version figuring that less is more. They continue to walk in silence for a few more minutes and Santana glances out of the corner of her eye wondering what is going on in her aunt's head.

"Just make sure you bring my truck back in one piece." The older Lopez tells the younger as they get up to the old beat up automobile in question. Santana comes to a halt, completely thrown off at the fact that she didn't just have to beg to borrow the truck. "And make sure you fill her up." She glances over her shoulder when she realizes Santana is no longer beside her and sighs, shaking her head. "The truck, not the girl. Get your head out of the gutter."

* * *

><p>Santana gets back from her date pretty early. She had an alright time, the girl was nice but, truthfully not her type. She told Hope, the girl, she'd call her, but those chances are pretty slim. She was pretty sure this 'date' situation was going to go in a particularly naked direction, but it turned out that the cute, way too tight tank top wearing bartender was all talk and no bite. Literally. Hope apparently really meant she was going to show Santana around town and for the majority of their get together made the Bostonian drive around to random places in her hometown of Carter. To say it was boring would be an understatement. To say it was a complete let down would be extremely accurate.<p>

It's nine already, which means Aunt Linda is most likely passed out on the couch with the television blaring. But, when she opens the door and is greeted by the sound of the nightly repeat of some game show, she chuckles. Her aunt is so predictable.

She quietly places the keys to the truck onto the table and tip toes her way to the living room with the plan of waking Aunt Linda up and help her to bed. However, she is stopped in her tracks before even entering the room when she hears the all too familiar sound of giggling, which does not belong to Aunt Linda. Her brow furrows, head tilts to the side and she no longer is standing on her toes with the intentions of being super quiet.

Peeking her head around the corner of the living room, she finds Brittany sitting on the floor, across from Aunt Linda, playing scrabble. Her head jerks back when her aunt laughs out and playfully taps the blonde's hand telling her that whatever she put down is not a real word. Unbeknownst to her mind, her body moves and she gets the attention of the woman quickly.

"Hey Tana," Aunt Linda smiles, still laughing a bit and she leans back into the couch. "How was your hot date?" She asks and Brittany's head snaps around to see Santana who is eyeing her back with confusion.

"Ummm…" Her head tilts to the side again, her hands reach up to remove her jacket and she clears her throat. "Great." She lies. "It went great." Adding a smile for good measure, out of the corner of her eyes she sees Brittany's head turn back to the game, shifting around in her spot on the floor. Aunt Linda glances over to Brittany for a moment, before she eyes her niece curiously.

"Well," The older Lopez slaps her hands on her thighs before she pushes herself up from the couch. "I'm going to bed. Make sure you turn the lights off." She points to Santana who nods back and watches as her aunt vanishes in the dim light of the hallway.

"Goodnight Miss Linda, thanks for letting me hangout." Brittany calls out as she smiles at Linda's retreating figure.

"Anytime," Linda replies, turning back to face the other end of the hallway as she comes to her bedroom door. "Goodnight girls." Santana's eyes return to the couch, to find Brittany has moved from her spot on the ground to take a more comfortable seat.

"So," The blonde starts, moving over so Santana can take the spot beside her. "Are you going to see her again?" Brittany asks, finally breaking the silence that has fallen between them.

"I don't know," Santana breathes out, trying her best to find a comfortable position on the couch. "Maybe." She can't fight that strange feeling at how awkward this conversation feels. "Probably not." She honestly answers this time and looks over at the blonde who half smiles as she stares at her own hands in her lap. "Britt?" The cheerleader lifts her head and turns to look back at the girl beside her. "I'm sorry, but, what are you doing here?"

"I was playing scrabble with Miss Linda, and now, I'm talking to you… duh." Brittany smirks, stating the obvious and this gets a laugh out of Santana who can't help but grin.

"Right, well," She rolls her eyes at how innocent Brittany can truly be sometimes. "Do you wanna, watch a movie?" Santana leans forward to grab the remote.

"Oh… I, I'm sure you're exhausted after your _date_." Brittany shifts uncomfortably, making it seem like she's getting up, and the disappointment in the way she says 'date' does not go unnoticed by Santana.

"Exhausted from how boring it was." Santana groans. "Chick was stale." She finally admits out loud. "Besides," She shrugs her shoulders and looks over at Brittany. "I'm never too tired to hang out with you." She winks, even though she instantly regrets the corny gesture, but it gets a laugh from the blonde, which she reasons is worth it.

"Great." Brittany gets comfortable again and takes the remote from Santana. "There's a 'Sex and the City' marathon on."

About three episodes in and two glasses of lemonade later, the girl's continue pulling apart the impossibilities of the lives of the four single ladies living in New York City. They stay quiet when the sex scenes come on, shifting awkwardly beside one another any and every time Samantha Jones graces the screen with her current bedtime pal. Santana's never been shy when it comes to sex, but there's something about the girl sitting next to her makes her feel like that seven year old girl all over again. Before the trials and tribulations of first kisses, second base, and sex. When everything was about running in the rain, swinging on the tire swing outside and making up fairy tales until she isn't afraid of the dark anymore.

"Are you a virgin?" Santana breaks the silence, turns her head from the television and over in the blonde's direction.

"No." Brittany replies instantly, getting a chuckle from her friend. "I just… never had a boyfriend." She adds as an afterthought not even fazed at the randomness of the conversation.

"Yeah," Santana sighs, nods her head and leans back into the couch. "Me neither." She shrugs her shoulders before taking a sip of her drink.

"Well, duh, because you're a lesbian." The blonde blurts out bluntly, causing Santana to lift her hand to her mouth to stifle a laugh, not wanting to spew her lemonade all over herself.

"True." She says with a nod after swallowing her drink.

"Have you had girlfriends?" Brittany asks as she reaches for her own glass and glances down at the way the condensation has made the coaster stick to the bottom. Santana purses her lips together, glances down at the coaster attached to the blonde's glass and slowly shakes her head. "Why not?"

"I don't do relationships." She states factually, letting her eyes flicker from piercing blue ones over to the chatter going on in the current episode they are 'watching'. "'Feelings' or whatever," She shrugs. "It changes people… and not for the better." She grumbles and when she feels the stare from Brittany penetrating her skin, she clears her throat and leans forward to put her drink back down to the table. "Why haven't you had a boyfriend?" She counters and when she looks over she sees Brittany shrug.

"I guess," Brittany starts, moving her head from side to side as she thinks of the right words to convey her thoughts. "I haven't felt 'it'." She decides on, figuring that this explanation makes the most sense, but when she sees the confusion on her friend's face, her shoulders slump.

"Felt what?" Santana counters, eyebrows furrow as she tries to understand the blonde. Brittany turns to face Santana, brings her hand up to rest her cheek into her palm and looks down at the space separating them.

"I don't know." She answers, so simply and innocently, and shrugs her shoulders when she meets those brown eyes. They stare at one another for a few, but long minutes, both unsure of what to say in response to Brittany's declaration of never feeling 'it', and then not knowing exactly what 'it' even is. "_Why_ are you so _against_ relationships?" Brittany finally asks out loud. "You say love is bogus and that relationships are pretty much a waste of time," Her head shakes and tilts to the side, as though trying to figure Santana out by staring at her. "But, you never really say why exactly." The Latina lightly clenches her jaw, breaks eye contact with Brittany and lets out a long sigh.

"I was fourteen," Santana begins, looking down at her hands clasping together in her lap. "And I realized that things were never gonna go back to the way they were." Her shoulders shrug and she gives Brittany a pointed look. "That _my dad_ wasn't going to be coming home, the home we all lived in together. He wasn't gonna be sitting at the dining room table for dinner or breakfast ever again." Her eyes flicker off to somewhere in the distance, not on anything in particular. "Because _he_ was moving out, 'cause, ya know, he and my mom weren't going to be together anymore." She breathes out her nose, licks her lips and lowers her eyes.

"I didn't get it." She continues. "They were _married_ for _so long_ and had _two_ kids. We had barbeques, went camping and had family vacations." The dark haired girl explains, her head shaking all the while she speaks and thinks. "So," She finally looks over at Brittany. "How does it fade? You know, love." Her eyes squint, as though in deep concentration as well as difficulty with the subject at hand. "I always thought it was something that grew bigger and brighter, but," She chuckles at her naivety and glances back down to her hands. "I guess that's only true in fairytales. And this life is most definitely _not_ a fairytale."

The conversation seems to end there, with Brittany not really having any kind of answer or reasons against why Santana shouldn't think this way. She is sure there is an argument here, but, she figures if she thinks about it long enough she can come up with a great explanation for her friend and then maybe she will reconsider the better side of love.

"Can I ask you a question?" Santana interrupts breaks the silence again, catching the blonde's attention quickly. "Your mom," She almost hesitates to ask, but in all honesty, ever since Mrs. Pierce's near threat to her the earlier in the day, she can't help but wonder what the woman actually said to her daughter to get her to stop being friends with Quinn Fabray. "With the Quinn thing, what happened?" Brittany lowers her eyes, bites her lower lip and nods a few times, she was sure this was going to be asked eventually.

"Long story short?" She offers with a sweet smile, although, topic considering it's kind of hard to be upbeat.

"Yes please." Santana chuckles, figuring long story short is better than no story at all.

"My mom said," Brittany begins, her voice barely above a whisper and she lifts her hand up to brush some blonde hair from her eyes. "If I didn't stop hanging out with her, then she'd force my dad to fire Mr. Fabray from Pierce Parts and Tires." The blonde admits, her eyes downcast, clearly ashamed. "And, jobs aren't exactly easy to come by, especially for guys with families." She adds, clears her throat and then brushes the tip of her nose with the back of her hand. "So, I didn't really have a choice." Her eyes lift to find that Santana is staring back at her, clearly invested in each and every word she speaks.

"I…" Santana drawls out, her head shakes in disbelief, eyes widen and she blinks rapidly a few times. "I don't know what to say." She is shock and, if she could speak and express it at all, in complete awe of the blonde before her. "So, wait," Her eyebrows knit together as her thoughts get tangled up in one another. "How come you've never told Quinn this?" Brittany shrugs her shoulders and gnaws on her top lip as her eyes scan the living room.

"I guess," She sighs out. "Well, I didn't want her to be afraid of the possibility that her father's job even hung in the balance." She turns her head, ensuring that she will avoid Santana's eyes, at least for a few moments. "I figured it'd be better if she hated me instead." The blonde muses, letting her eyes fall down to the couch pillow that Santana is playing with.

"She," Santana shakes her head, rests the pillow onto her lap and rests her hands on top of it. "She doesn't hate you, Brittany. In fact, she still cares about you." She nods. "Told me so herself."

"I don't know why she would, I was awful." Brittany grumbles and shakes her head at herself. "I left her when she needed me most."

"Maybe because she knows you better than you think she does." Santana offers, leaning over to nudge the blonde with her shoulder. "She knows you have a method to your madness." She chuckles when she finally starts to see a small smile forming on Brittany's lips. "You two were inseparable, once upon a time."

* * *

><p>A knock at the door catches the attention of the Lopez women who are standing in the kitchen cleaning up after dinner. It's a little past six thirty and besides the mailman or even Miss Pillsbury, both stare curiously until another set of knocks come. Aunt Linda looks over at her niece giving her the 'I have my hands full you get it' stare down. With a huff, roll of the eyes and tossing a dish towel on the counter, Santana makes her way over to the door and grins slightly as she notices the familiar figure of Brittany outside the screen door.<p>

"Hey there." Santana greets as she opens the door and leans against the doorframe.

"Hi." The tall blonde replies softly and adds a smile which only adds to her sweetness.

"What's up?" The shorter girl asks, comfortably crossing her arms over her chest and tilts her head to the side with wonder as to this random visit in the evening. Brittany grins wider and raises her hand which has her keys dangling from her finger and she shakes them.

"You're still a little weak getting into third gear." She points out matter of factly. Santana's eyebrows furrow, her mouth opens a bit and she breaths out a small huff. "Come on, before the sun goes completely down. I promise, I will _try _not to make fun of you when you stall." Brittany says in silky smooth way that wins almost everyone over. Santana swiftly grabs the keys from the cheerleaders hand and gives her a fake, but amused smirk.

"Aunt Lee, Brittany's taking me out to break her truck." Santana calls out and as she steps onto the porch she hears her aunt laughing, telling Brittany to take it easy on her.

Brittany takes Santana up and down the south service road, showing her how to smoothly transition from gear to gear. She only stalled once and Brittany barely laughed. Barely. But after a few hours of good hard teaching and some silent listening on Santana's part, they are now back on their way towards the Pierce's nicely paved driveway.

"You're getting better." Brittany tells Santana, pressing her finger into the small dimple in the tanned girl's cheek as she tries to fight her smile. "Pretty soon you won't need me anymore." She sighs in defeat. Santana gives her a sideways glance and then shakes her head.

"Never." She says under her breath.

Santana pulls the powder blue pick-up truck into Pierce driveway, putting it into park just behind Mr. Pierce's fancy new truck. When she shuts the engine off, the inside of the vehicle is draped with a silence, the comforting kind with only the hint of crickets off in the distance. The blonde leans forward from the passenger side as she unbuckles her seatbelt, ducking her head just so, allowing herself to look up at the stars through the windshield. The Latina grins at the child like look in her friends eyes, a tiny chuckle escaping her lips and she lets herself lean forward to take a peek at the night's sky.

"Wow." Santana breathes out, eyes widen and her mouth hangs open for a few seconds. "I forgot how clear the sky is out here." She muses, her head tilts to the sky some more, taking in the glow of the stars, that back in Boston are dimmer out by the city lights. A giggle from beside her catches her attention however. "What?"

"You've been here for over a month," Brittany points out, amusement painted all over her features as she looks over to Santana. "And you haven't even looked at the sky?" She asks, somewhat in shock. Santana simply shrugs and turns her focus back to the night's sky.

"I was busy." Santana mutters sheepishly.

"To open your eyes and see something that's been right in front of you the whole time?" The blonde counters, still giggling as she curiously waits for a response. The Latina's eyebrows raise and she chances a quick glance over at Brittany who still has eyes for the sky. "Well," The cheerleader pulls the lever on the door and pushes it open, and turns to glance at her friend. "Goodnight, Santana." She smiles that perfect smile, reaches for the keys in Santana's hands, and then hops out of the truck.

The other girl does the same, the sound of the driver's side door echoes into the air around them and she calls out a soft 'g'night' to the blonde already walking away from the truck. Slowly, she drags her feet across the pebbles and half paved part of the Pierce driveway, hands shoved into her jean short pockets and her head held up high as she continues to admire the stars and moon above. But before she comes to the end of the driveway where the dirt path sidewalk begins, she stops and spins around cautiously, aware of the quietness.

"I called you, you know." Santana says once they both are a few feet closer to their respective houses. She's already turned around to face Brittany, who has stopped walking as soon as she heard Santana speak. "The first summer we didn't come back here. Your mom answered." She laughs with a shake of her head. "I guess she didn't give you the message." She adds and watches as the blonde turns around to look back at her, a sad yet surprised sparkle in her eye. "I called to wish you a happy birthday."

Brittany nods, letting Santana know she's heard her as well as understands. The shorter girl bites on her bottom lip and bounces on the balls of her feet while her fingers that are hidden within the depths of her pocket, dig into her thighs. The blonde waves, an angelic and light hearted giggle pops from her pinks lips before she spins around and carefully jogs up to the steps of her front porch.

Santana stands there, watching on as the image of the blonde fades behind the weathered screen door that surrounds the Pierce's front porch. The door slowly closes, claps against the wood frame and then shuts entirely, and Brittany vanishes behind the front door of the house. The shorter girl hums out a sigh, unaware of the small smile that's formed on her lips as she stared at the girl next door bounce step to step. She turns on her heels and finishes her journey back to Aunt Linda's, where she finds the porch light on and the woman of the house sitting comfortably on a rocking chair beside the door.

"Have fun?" Aunt Linda asks as Santana comes to the last stair on the porch. The young girl nods, glancing down at the pile of newspapers her aunt's gathered to put out for trash the next day.

"You need help?" She questions, kicking the already tied up stack by the banister. Aunt Linda looks up from the group of papers she's currently fighting with and quirks an eyebrow.

"Yeah," Linda drawls out and then points over to the basket of magazines and clipper mags. "Gather those up." She motions with her hands and then goes back to her pile once again.

Santana pulls her hands from her pockets and kneels down to grab the stack of magazines and starts going through them, letting the sound of papers rustling and crumpling become their background noise. Aunt Linda continues to sort her papers out, every now and again glancing up from her ministrations to look to her niece. They sit there, together in silence, stacking papers and magazines, tying them up and setting them close to the edge of the porch.


	6. Chapter 6

**And Dreams**

_**July 8, 2006**_

_Santana rests her arms onto the window sill of her bedroom. Well, it's not really her bedroom, but it is when she comes to visit Aunt Linda. But she doesn't dwell so much on those tiny details and just calls it her room regardless. She grins, it's more of a half smile, and she leans her chin onto her forearms as she continues to stare ahead._

_Sometimes when she is lucky, lucky enough for Brittany to forget to close her curtains, she can see perfectly into the blonde's bedroom. And this is what she is doing right now and enjoying every moment of it. According to Brittany and her parents, she's been in dance since she was five, and man is she good. Santana strains to hear the music, but sometimes it doesn't even matter when it comes to watching her friend dance. She can swear that the music plays out of Brittany and that's how she is able to move so effortlessly._

_She hums along, recognizing the song as one she's heard before, and she moves her head from side to side along with the slow beat. Mesmerized by those long legs as she moved about in her bedroom, the way her arms reach out to her side only to be drawn back in a little quicker, make Santana oblivious to the rest of the world._

"_Wow." She breathes out and her eyes widen when she watches Brittany complete what had appeared to be a pretty difficult spin or twirl or whatever it's called._

_Santana always thought Brittany was brilliant. It never really mattered to her what the rest of the kids around town said about her behind her back or even to her face. Brittany is the smartest person Santana has ever met. And she always thinks it more when gets the chance to watch her friend dance. She's pretty certain that the phrase 'poetry in motion' was penned for people like Brittany._

_It's towards the end of the song and Santana tilts her head to the side when she notices Brittany's arms come up, acting as though she is dancing with someone. The dark haired girl wonders if her friend has a dance partner in her classes, some boy who leads her around the dance floor to some snooty classical song. Her nose crinkles at the thought of some grubby pre-pubescent boys hands all over Brittany, actually, it's kind of irritating. _

_A sigh escapes her lips, her forehead smoothes and she brings her hand up to let her chin fit into her palm. She doesn't really know how to dance, not like Brittany anyway. As she watches her friend move around her room across the way with her invisible dance partner, Santana thinks about asking Brittany to teach her to dance like that. Surely it would come in handy in the future for something like a wedding, a sweet sixteen, her quincenera or even a school dance, just to get the basics of course. _

_She nods to herself and purses her lips confidently. Tomorrow, she's going to ask Brittany to teach her how to properly dance. Maybe they can take their bikes over to the barn, this way no one will be around to watch them, and she can show her how to move gracefully around a dance floor. It couldn't be too hard to learn, besides she has rhythm, she's a Spanish girl so of course she has the hips to move to a beat, that's not in question here._

_Brittany will probably love that she wants to learn. She'll probably squeal, giggle and throw herself into Santana's arms with excitement. But for now, Santana will settle for just being a spectator a little while longer, until Brittany realizes that her curtains are open and blush at being caught dancing alone in her room, again._

* * *

><p><strong>You Say Why, I Say I Don't Know<strong>

_**November, 2011**_

Santana loves the weekends, always has. It's when she gets the chance to sleep in and regain her energy from the early mornings of school and usually from a late Friday night out. The first part stays the same, but since moving in with Aunt Linda, Texas has yet to keep her out till all hours of the night. It doesn't help that her aunt is keen on keeping tabs on her whereabouts; she has also given her a strict curfew. But, it wouldn't matter anyway because Knox City is chock full of boredom and dirt roads that go on forever without a party in sight.

In a blissful state of deep sleep, she turns on her back prepared to continue her journey through dreamland. The late morning sun, however, has other plans for her. Her eyes flicker as sunlight hits her face and she wakes up. With a groan she tries to keep her eyes tightly shut, trying to ward off the annoying brightness and fall back into that heavy sleep she was jostled from. The offending light has no plans of letting up anytime soon and the wonderfulness of sleeping in is being ruined.

She grunts as she throws her blankets off and kicks them away from her body. It's a battle, but her eyes instinctively open as she gets up from her bed to go over and pull the curtains she was sure that she had pulled shut last night. Aunt Linda must have come in at some time and opened them up on her before she went out for her usually routine of running errands early on Saturday morning. Giving the dreary colored curtains a distasteful stare, she reaches her hand out to yank them closed and hopes she hasn't been awake for too long to disturb her still groggy mind.

Just as her hand reaches the fabric of the curtain, her eyes pick up on movement from across the way. Beyond the fence that separates the Pierce lawn from the Lopez lawn is the open window of the youngest Pierce. Santana stands there, her tank top slightly askew, her boxers bunched up and her hair haphazardly tossed in a pony tail. She blinks the sleep and blur from her eyes and looks through her bedroom window into the one of the girl next door.

She can't hear the music, if there is any even being played, but she can see it wash through Brittany's body as she shamelessly dances alone in her room. Her arms stretch out showing off her long body and as she spins perfectly on one foot, her blonde hair follows her movements. A memory creeps into her mind, one from many years ago and one from this very spot in this exact room. A small, sleepy smile tugs at the corner of her mouth as she recalls the ideas and thoughts of her younger mind. So simple, honest and excited was her mind back then.

There were days, too many to count, where she would stand at this window and do just this. She was never too sure if Brittany knew about it or if she did it on purpose. The curtains in her room were always open, as though welcoming an audience to a dance that was only for the two of them. Her movements were always so free and inspiring. The way Brittany danced made Santana feel as though anything was possible and watching her now a tiny bit of that feeling made its way inside of her. Or maybe it is just a memory of the feelings she used to get when watching her friend dance around her room without a care in the world.

Santana shifts her feet and for a second she feels like that small move has caused Brittany to stop dancing. She holds her breath and scrunches her eyebrows because, well, that's impossible. It's only when she sees Mrs. Pierce through the bedroom window does she realize the actual reason for the dancing to end. The older woman waves an arm and then Brittany vanishes from her room to do whatever it is her mother told her to do. The older Pierce walks over to where Santana can only assume the music is coming from and leans down to probably shut it off.

That's when Mayor Pierce makes her way to the window and pushes her daughter's curtains more to the side, letting in more sunlight, and looks across the way to find Santana at her own window. The stare down only lasts for a few seconds, but they feel like minutes, hours even. Mrs. Pierce doesn't smile or offer a tiny wave. Instead, she turns around and walks right out of the room. Santana lets out a breath, remembering she'd been holding it when she thought she'd been caught spying on the dancing blonde next door.

With a roll of her eyes and a shake of her head, Santana pulls her curtains closed, the initial reason for her to go to her window. She quickly jumps back into bed and under the covers, but it seems that sleep has absolutely left the building. While wasting the day away in bed usually sounds like the most fantastic idea in the world, she doesn't feel as comfortable with crazy, icy Mayor Pierce being only feet away from her. So, she rolls over to grab her ancient cell phone and decides to give Quinn Fabray a call. Surely they could find something semi exciting to do on their Saturday off.

At Santana's plea to 'get the fuck out of the house', Quinn picks her friend up and drives them into town. She brings them to Holly's Daze, a small little café just off of Main Street that has a quaint fifties vibe to it just like most of the popular places here in Knox City. When they walk in, Santana rolls her eyes at the juke box against the wall among a bunch of tables that reminds her of that show 'Happy Days' that her mom watches on Nick at Nite.

Since picking her friend up, Quinn has been making most of the conversation seeing as Santana sulks in her interrupted sleep funk. She nods and grunts to let the other girl know she hears her talking, even if she isn't really listening. A small chuckle leaves her lips as they sit down and Quinn informs her that sometimes at night, the little café turns into some sort of karaoke joint and open mic situation. That the owner of Holly's Daze is Holly Holiday, a woman who grew up in Knox and traveled the country trying to find herself. Oddly enough, she found herself back in Knox City after her father fell ill and could no longer watch after his burger place which turned into the very café the two teenagers are currently sitting in.

"My parents went to school with her, she was a few years younger though." Quinn continues after the waitress drops their drinks off and tells them she'll be back in a few to take their order. "My mom said she was always throwing the craziest parties and was pretty much a wild child." She lightly taps her fingers on the table and watches on as Santana looks around with her straw between her lips. "When she first came back, she was subbing at the high school and everyone was skeptic about her being in charge of their kids. There were always these insane stories about her gallivanting around New York with famous people and L.A. with movie stars. Probably half true, the gallivanting part, but probably not the famous people part." She shrugs her shoulders and starts to play with the straw in her own drink. "I don't know, I think she's pretty cool. I had her as a sub for Spanish and History a few times, she's entertaining which is more than I can say for most of the teachers at our school. But she doesn't do that much anymore, so she can keep an eye on this place." She points to the ceiling as though to emphasize that she means the café that they are sitting in.

The waitress comes back over and thankfully interrupts the nonexistent conversation Quinn is having with Santana. They order some burgers and fries and soon enough the waitress is gone once more leaving them in a quiet bubble of awkwardness. It hasn't been so weird for either of them to be in each other's company and not talk about much of anything. But for some reason, today seems a bit extra hard to pull Santana out of her shell and actually use her words besides for ordering lunch.

"You don't say much do you?" Quinn finally asks after too much silence.

"Not much to say I guess." Santana shrugs, but finally meets her friend's stare.

"When we were kids no one could shut you up." Quinn giggles, but its short lived when she receives an eye roll from the girl sitting across from her. "What?"

"You…" Santana shakes her head and shifts in her seat, letting out a sigh. "You and Brittany. You keep re-telling these stories, memories of when we were eight years old and… we aren't those little girls Q." She keeps her eyes on Quinn's. "Not anymore. You should know out of all of us." Santana explains, her eyes drift from Quinn's and towards the window that looks out to the corner of where Main Street ends.

Before Santana can even think to apologize or before Quinn can come back with a retort, the kitchen doors swinging open loudly catch their attention. Quinn smiles brightly over at the tall blonde woman who has on the same grin and makes her way towards their table.

"Hola chica." The woman greets Quinn and leans down to give her a hug before sitting in one of the extra chairs at their table.

"Miss Holiday." Quinn beams back and Holly shakes her head, chuckles and waves her hand.

"We are not in school Q." She points out and gives Santana a 'seriously' look before turning her attention back to Quinn. "It's Holly when we meet on the streets." She explains and then offers her fist to Quinn for a fist bump. Santana can't bite back the laugh that pops out when Quinn Fabray fist bumps a forty something substitute teacher slash crappy café owner. "Hey new girl, what's your name?" Holly turns her attention to Santana who is snickering to herself about this woman and her obvious too cool for school attitude.

"This is Santana, she's Miss Linda's niece." Quinn provides the need to know information.

"Is that so?" Holly eyes the dark haired girl up and nods. "Definitely a Lopez for sure." She winks and playfully nudges Santana's chin with her knuckles. Santana jerks her head back wondering if this Holly lady knows anything about personal boundaries. "I think I remember hearing some rumor floating around about a little Lopez gracing the lovely town of Knox."

"This town is like its own high school. The grownups are worse than the teenagers." Quinn groans, grabbing her drink and takes a quick sip. Holly nods in agreement as she leans back in her chair, obviously getting comfortable around the two girls.

"Ain't that a fact." Holly throws her head back and slaps the table at the ridiculousness of the statement as well as the truth. "So sweet cheeks, how is it that you're all buddy buddy with my girl Quinn here?" She asks, pointing in Quinn's direction but looking at Santana.

"Oh, uh…" Santana shifts awkwardly in her seat as Holly stares her down. She's usually not one to be intimidated, especially by adults. It's not so much that she's intimidated really, but more so shifting because this woman is actually asking because she is interested and not just making small talk.

"Santana's family used to come here every summer." Quinn once again chimes in as Santana's question responder. "They stayed with Miss Linda and, well, that's right next door to the Pierce's." She explains easily enough and Holly nods in understanding.

"Oh," Holly drawls out with a chuckle. "How's living next to _Mayor_ Pierce?" It's clear in her tone that Holly Holiday is pretty keen on Annie Pierce and her ice bitch ways. She even fakes a shiver being sent down her body just for referring to her. "Chicks a little frigid if ya know what I mean." Both girls can fully attest to this statement seeing as Mrs. Pierce has never actually sent a smile in either of their direction.

"It just doesn't make any sense how Brittany is her child." Santana finally speaks up. Quinn shrugs her shoulders as she leans back to let the waitress put the basket holding her burger and fries down in front of her.

"Thanks." The Holly says with a smile.

"Uh, yea, thanks." Santana adds after the waitress has already walked away and watches as Holly snags a fry from her basket of food.

"It's kind of funny." Holly hums out as she chews the stolen fry and the girl's look at her questioningly. "I mean, that girl is determined to be everything her mother wants her to be." She says with certainty, waving her fry in the air while she speaks as if using it to make her points. "But, more determined to be everything her mother don't want her to be." Santana stops putting her burger together and watches Holly get up from their table and push her chair in. Quinn is in her own world, enjoying her extra bacon, bacon cheeseburger. "Brittany," The older blonde starts, wipes her hands on the back of her worn in, boot cut jeans and looks over her shoulder. "She'll get herself out of Knox. Come hell or high water."

Santana thinks that this Holly chick is the most observant adult she has come across here in Knox City, Texas. She wonders if what this woman says is fact or simply hope, and that Brittany Pierce, the girl destined to be the beauty queen of this small town, will get out and be something regardless of her mother. When the café owner vanishes into the double doors of the kitchen, Quinn starts up on trying to make conversation with Santana again. It takes a few topics but eventually, Santana bites and they start talking about the Annual Knox City Late Fall Fair.

* * *

><p>Another Sunday means another day at church. Santana's stopped counting the days down until her departure, only because it reminds her of how many Sundays are left for her here in this small town. That and the phone call she had received, or that Aunt Linda had received earlier this week. Turns out that the plans for her to go back to Boston for Thanksgiving fell through due to some court order and now it seems as though she is going to be breaking bread with who only knows.<p>

She remembers when she was younger and her Aunt would tell stories of how she and Santana's Uncle Roger would spend their holidays at soup kitchens or the church for those less fortunate. All Santana knows is that this upcoming holiday she is the unfortunate one. Sure, she was able to remove herself a week and a half ago when little goblins came knocking on the door for free candy. But, she figures it's going to take a nuclear war and her getting drafted to fight zombies to miss Thanksgiving with Aunt Linda.

All of the possibilities seem to be running through her mind as she and Aunt Linda reach the bottom steps of the church. She contemplates a twisted ankle, even going so far as slipping off the top step, letting her head hit the pavement, rendering her unconscious. But, then horrors of a southern hospital and random scenes from Texas Chainsaw Massacre flood over her and she decides that throwing on an apron and shoveling food to the poor part of town might not be so bad.

Like every Sunday in Knox City, the town's folk gather outside the doors and catch up on their past week. It's always the same old crap over and over again, with everyone pretending like they care more this week about Sherriff Hummel's low sodium diet more than they did the week before. Or giving a more sympathetic head tilt at the fifth time of hearing about how Mrs. Hudson found out her son was giving thought to joining the military like his late father. And as always, everyone turns a very obvious blind eye away from Sherriff Hummel's son, Kurt, in his flashy yet elegant Sunday best.

Same stories, same day.

Aunt Linda makes small talk with the first woman she sees, who just happens to be Judy Fabray. Luckily for Santana its Quinn's mom this week, unlike last Sunday when she was forced to listen to the Spanish teacher from her school try and have an ethnic conversation with her and her Aunt. While the older women talk, the teenagers roll their eyes and Quinn brings up how stressful cheerleading has been even though she knows Santana could care less. Just when Santana is about to fall into that perfect state of bliss where she's managed to fall asleep with her eyes open _and_ standing up, a different voice breaks through her reverie.

"Wait, what?" She shakes her head, blinks her eyes one and turns her head finding she is now in the company of her two blonde companions and not just one any longer. Quinn chuckles to herself and Brittany lets out a light, airy laugh through her nose and smiles.

"I just asked if you were ready for today." Brittany repeats herself only to get a stifled laugh from Quinn and a perplexed look from Santana.

"For church?" She asks in utter confusion which makes the two other girls laugh a little more.

"On that note, I think my family is heading in." Quinn tells Brittany, pointing over her shoulder towards where her parents are indeed making their way inside. "Good luck." With one last giggle, she spins on her heels and meets her mother at the doorway of the church and disappears inside.

"Brittany." Mrs. Pierce calls out, breaking the teenagers' attention from one another. Annie Pierce still has on her shades, but Santana is able to see that red, burning laser pushing through the dark lenses of her most definitely real designer sunglasses.

"Coming." The head cheerleader tells her mom before turning her focus back to the girl in front of her with kind of a grin and an annoyed eye roll. "Every year 'round the same time, me and my dad go out to the barn to meet with ranch hands to send the horses over to Dixon for a few months." She explains vaguely and Santana just nods that she understands the words but by the expression on her face, she has no idea where this is leading to. "Umm, I'm sorry, I thought Miss Linda asked you." Brittany's head tilts to the side in that cute way it used to when she wanted some more popsicles when they were kids and Santana's eyes dart over in her aunt's very direction. "Daddy can't this year, what with the business kind of being low and he needs to focus on the dealership." She shrugs her shoulders. "That's what my mom said anyways."

"Okay, so, what do you need me for?" Santana questions with trepidation. She is more than sure her aunt has promised to loan her out for some sort of labor that her perfectly manicured and moisturized hands are not ready for.

"I asked Quinn cause I was sure she could, but she can't." She rapidly explains, tucking her hair behind her ear as her eyes scan over the rush of the town flooding into the church. "And then I ran into Miss Linda the other day, over at The Library."

"At school?" Santana interrupts and gets a furrowed brow out of her friend.

"No, The Library." Brittany repeats.

"Brittany!" Mrs. Pierce says again, a little louder and Brittany moves a step in her direction to show she's heard her for the second time.

"She said you'd be happy to lend me a hand." She finally blurts out, with a smile, a small head tilt and a scrunch of her nose. "I'll see ya inside." Brittany waves and turns around quite like Quinn did moments ago, and quickly meets up with her parents before vanishing beyond the doors of the small church.

Feeling a body sidle up beside her, she can only assume and slightly hope that it's the arm of her Aunt Linda brushing against her own. She turns her head to thankfully see that it is indeed Aunt Linda and after letting out a breath, relieved that it's not some redneck townie, she scowls. Linda merely rolls her eyes, throws her arm around her niece's shoulder and leads the way to find some seats. She's sure her aunt was never going to tell her about this promised manual labor and that the woman knew if Brittany simply showed up with that perfect smile that Santana was destined to fall for whatever it is she had in mind and needed.

The Lopez ladies find seats behind the Fabray family while the rest of the congregation fall into their spots and soon the entire place is packed with Knox City citizens. It goes slowly, as per usual, and Santana counts the minutes that are being drained from her youth. She finds herself glancing over a few times in the direction of the Pierce clan to find Brittany staring at the back of Sherriff Hummel's head. Chuckling to herself, she wonders if she too has found that tiny little pattern on the hair he has left that kind of looks like the lamp from Aladdin. Aunt Linda elbows her when her giggle fit gets a bit too loud and she muffles the sounds, trying to turn them into a cough to fend off the inquiring stares of her new Knox City neighbors.

When church lets out, the town scurries out onto the sidewalk to either continue their conversations from earlier or reflect on the day's 'lovely sermon'. Aunt Linda hurries them to the truck, explaining that Santana needs to get changed into some more appropriate attire if she is going to be working in the dust of Knox, hauling heavy loads into trucks and moving horses. Of course she cringes at all of this terminology, especially when she gazes upon her newest Sunday best threads that Aunt Linda had picked up for her. Something about a sundress and her exquisite rack does not a vixen make. At least, she reasons, Aunt Linda did not go for the whole 'Blossom' look and force her into a pair of low top Doc Marten's and scrunchy socks.

Passing the Pierce's house only seconds before pulling into Aunt Linda's driveway, Santana notices that the family next door is already home. She rolls her eyes at the promptness that apparently comes with being a town's person of Knox City. She can't help but figure all the boys who take girls out don't honk the horn when picking them up for dates like they do back in Boston. The boys most definitely do not keep the girls out past curfew and that they respectfully meet the parents before stealing the little girl away and most likely still doing what the boys do back home behind closed doors of their Ford pick-up.

With Santana a few feet behind, Linda is in the house in a flash, talking about lending her niece a pair of sneakers and going on about how three inch heels are in no way suitable for working on the farm. Santana can't fight the laugh that flies from her mouth and throws her head back. Never in a million years did she ever think she'd hear the words 'working on the farm' and her own name in the same sentence. Maybe once upon a time it was a viable idea, but that was so long ago and she no longer had flights of fancy for living on a farm oh so far away from her city life to raise baby cows and chickens with her bff's Brittany and Quinn.

"Here, I think we're the same size." Aunt Linda holds out a pair of worn in Converse sneakers towards her niece as she eyes up the lace up suede boots Santana is wearing.

"Hey, don't get any ideas about having a little fashion show while I'm off sweating and getting hay in my hair." Santana points at the woman before grabbing the offered foot wear. She rolls her eyes, a common occurrence, and walks away before getting a smart remark from her aunt and goes to her bedroom. "Am I supposed to wear my daisy dukes and a flannel shirt too?" She jokingly asks, a bite of bitter sarcasm in her voice. Aunt Linda's bellowing chuckle emanates through the house and the silence that follows only leads Santana to believe she is being giving that Lopez eye roll back in full from the other room.

Maybe in jest, or from pure exhaustion of trying to fight the old southern wardrobes that haunt her at night, she kicks her boots off and makes way to her dresser. In the second drawer, she retrieves her cut off jean shorts. She laughs to herself as she matches them with a tight white wife beater from her top drawer and a worn in flannel shirt she's had since she first realized she was a lesbian. It just seemed like a rite of passage for her to go out and get a flannel shirt. It seemed a lot better of an idea than going out and getting a rainbow flag.

She pulls her sundress up and over her head, thrilled to finally be out of that 'girl next door' costume and tosses it to the floor. The jean shorts are tugged up, zipped and buttoned while she stares down at the next articles of clothing. But, as she reaches towards the tank top on her bed, she is startled at the tiny knock and movement from where her window is. She jumps back and even lets out a tiny yelp as she pulls the tank top to cover the front of herself.

"Hey there." Brittany laughs with an innocent smile as she climbs through Santana's bedroom window.

"Uh, hi?" Santana breathes out with relief but still kind of scared because that could have been _anyone_. She holds her hand to her chest, feeling the way it beats hard and fast. "What are you doing? I could have been ass naked here." She points out, finally pulling her shirt over her head after getting over the intrusion. Sure, strangers have walked in with her wearing much less, but it never makes it any less traumatizing. Brittany chews on her bottom lip, shrugs her shoulders and shoves her hands into her back pockets as she walks around the room looking at everything else but her friend who was nearly naked.

"Didn't know if you were gonna try and ditch me." She explains with a hint of amusement and chances a glance over her shoulder to catch Santana shake away a smile. "I know how you get about having to exert yourself." Brittany says in a long voice, almost dramatically and then lets herself fall to her friends bed pretending to be as delicate as a princess.

"You're a comedian." Santana retorts back dryly. "Are you ready?" She asks, pulling her flannel shirt on and tying it down at the bottom before rolling the sleeves up. Brittany turns on her stomach, sticks her tongue out and playfully rolls her eyes before pushing herself up from the bed.

"Nice outfit." Brittany bumps her hip into Santana's as she brushes by her and out the door to the hallway.

"Aunt Lee, we're heading out now." Santana calls out without any clue as to where her aunt could possibly be. She hears a faint 'have fun', grunts to herself and then follows Brittany out to her truck which is still parked in front of her own house. "You know you totally owe me for this." She comments before jumping into the passenger side of the powder blue pick-up. Brittany giggles her little girl laugh as she does the same but on the driver's side.

"I will most definitely make this worth your while." She says with a raise of an eyebrow before turning the ignition.

The ride over to the Pierce barn is the usual fifteen to twenty minutes it has always been. Santana had forgotten the times when Mr. Pierce had brought the three of them, Quinn included, out to the barn to pet the horses and even hop on them a few times. She was never one to be animal friendly with anything bigger than Rambo, the German Sheppard that they had back in Boston. But, there was something about the way Brittany was around the massive creatures that put Santana's nerves and tension at ease. Not one to admit to fear, she would usually be found a few steps behind her two buddies whenever around the beasts were close by.

Two trailers perfectly set up just outside the barns large red, wooden doors are waiting for them when they pull up. Three men with their oversized cowboy hats, one with a toothpick between his lips and the other two looking like they'd missed a bath or several, lean comfortably against their hard driven, paint chipped trucks. A wide grin comes over Brittany's face as she throws her own truck into park and sends a friendly wave over to the men that Santana can hopefully assume are the 'ranch hands' here to gather up the horses from the Pierce barn. She's really not prepared if this turns into some kind of backwoods horror movie because she didn't bring her purse which has an unused canister of pepper spray her brother had given her a few years ago. But that's another story for another day.

"Hope we didn't keep you waiting." Brittany tells the tallest of the three men. He smiles, dips his hat to the two young girls and offers a smile.

"Just got here few minutes ago Miss." He winks and chuckles, but not in that creepy serial killer way so Santana allows herself to let out a sigh of relief. Perhaps all of those stereotypes about rednecks being as dumb as rocks ring true and that these men wouldn't know what to do with a stick and hole even if it were laid out in front of them. "Ready when you are." He tells them and then motions with his arm for the other two gentlemen to follow suit.

"Okay, then let's get 'em in." Brittany says with excitement and all but bounces over to the doors that lead into the barn. "We moved 'em in here the other night on account of the rain and all. They're all fed up though so, hopefully you won't have to stop much on the way over to Dixon like last time." She giggles and the three men chuckle, nodding their heads obviously recalling the last time they drove the Pierce's horses two towns over.

Santana stands just outside the barn doors and watches as Brittany leads the horses towards the men one by one and cutely says goodbye to each one as though she's seeing them off for summer camp or college. She laughs lightly to herself at the way the Brittany pats one of the smaller horses on its back saying, 'I'll see ya soon'. A half hour later, the two of them are standing in the middle of the dirt path as the trucks pull the trailers now filled with horses away to bring them over to Dixon where they'll stay for until spring time comes around again. It's silent for a few moments afterward. Santana uncomfortable shifts from foot to foot waiting for her friend to stop staring off into the distance because it is not going to bring her animal friends back any sooner.

"Well," Brittany breaks the quiet and steps back, brushing some hair away from her forehead and then pushes her shoulder against Santana's to get her attention. "Better get started then." She turns around and Santana unsurely follows suit, wondering exactly what is in front of her for the remainder of the afternoon.

"What do I have to do now?" She asks once they get inside the great big barn. Oddly enough, this is the one place that seems just as big as it did when she was just a kid. The walls go on forever, still unpainted as they were those years ago and the man made stables for the horses are as rickety and uneven too.

"We've gotta gather up these hay bales." Brittany points over by the right side of the barn where everything looks a right mess. "And stack em up by the door for the trucks." She explains while she moves over to a very small wooden chest that is connected to the wall on the opposite side of the barn. Santana rolls her eyes, because of course she should not have been shocked by this. Talk about real manual labor. She scrunches her nose and raises her hands to look at the most luxurious manicure she'd given herself just a day ago and how grabbing at blocks of hay that probably weigh more than her is going to completely ruin it. "Here ya go buddy." Brittany shoves a pair of thick, working gloves towards Santana who begrudgingly takes them with a huff.

"These are disgusting." Santana notes, her eyes peering along the worn in material and the random stains from who knows what all over the finger tips. "I am not putting my hands in these." She shakes her head and places her hands on her hips watching as Brittany does just that. The taller girl throws her head back and chuckles as she pulls on her equally gross gloves.

"Don't be such a princess." Brittany mocks before brushing by her towards the messy bits of hay they are about to wrestle with. "Seriously, it'll go super fast and I promise you won't break a nail." She bites her bottom lip, clearly trying to bat her eyes and not laugh so hard at her dainty friend. Santana squints her eyes and gives Brittany a not so subtle glare before stomping a foot to the dirt ridden ground and pulls her gloves on.

"Fine, but you totally owe me." She mutters, blowing some hair from her face and flicks her head to the side to ensure the strands won't block her vision. Brittany lets out another laugh before reaching out to grab a bale of hay to bring over to the other side of the barn.

"You got it doll face." The blonde says in the sweetest, most innocent tone and Santana can't fight the adoring eye roll she sends her friend's way.

* * *

><p>Annie Pierce sits at her desk, pen in hand and her eyes stare at the window open on her computer screen. It's quieter day in the office than usual, but considering it is a Sunday there wouldn't really be much traffic in the halls of the Mayor's floor. She jots down a few notes, letting out a sigh as she turns the page and pinches the bridge of her nose with her free hand. Mayor Pierce tries not to go into the office on Sundays, but she needed to keep her mind off of the bothersome things in her current life.<p>

The argument she and her husband had gotten into earlier in the week replays in her mind. It should not have even been a confrontation, but as it turned out, they simply didn't meet eye to eye on the subject. Mrs. Pierce was not and is not too keen on the idea of Linda Lopez's niece hanging around her daughter, especially without any supervision. Mr. Pierce, as always, doesn't see the problem with Brittany and Santana picking up where they left off all those years ago, telling his wife that the girl isn't as bad as his wife thinks the entire world is. Clearly his easy going, everyone's got good in them way of life is a part Brittany has inherited.

Just as she decides to graze over the details for the Annual Knox City Late Fall Fair, a beep from her cell phone breaks her focus. It's a message from her assistant Terri so she opens it instantly. The text message isn't much of a memo but instead a link to a website. She quickly types the information into her computer and comes upon the Facebook page of one Santana Lopez. Annie Pierce lets out an unamused snort as her eyes trace over the webpage open on her desktop computer.

Going by the name on the page, Snixx-Pez, she's sure she would not have been able to figure out that this is Santana's Facebook page. The picture, however, gives her up instantly. It's a picture of Linda Lopez's niece, scantily clad in tight clothing that leaves nothing to the imagination. Her eyes squint at the glass in her hand, which Mayor Pierce can only assume is alcohol and the background to be a club of sorts judging by the dark yet multicolored lights.

With a click of the mouse, she begins to browse through the numerous pictures of Santana and all of her friends. There's one of her doing a body shot off of a girl lying on a bar. Another picture shows her biting a lemon or a lime wedge out of a guy's mouth that has a mohawk. There is a bunch where she is kissing a bunch of different people, guys and girls alike. Clearly, this girl does not discriminate and this makes Annie Pierce cringe right down to her very core. The fact that her daughter is wandering around Knox City with a girl like this rattles the very perfection the Pierce's have created for their family.

Unable to continue perusing the Lopez girl's online photo albums, Mayor Pierce scrolls down through her main page to see what kind of friends the girl usually keeps. Her head shakes as she sees that majority of the comments contain profanity and refer to some sort of delinquent activities. Some say 'Miss u Snixx' and others say 'where r u?', while there are a few that have girls asking why Santana hasn't called them.

Not being able to go onward, Mrs. Pierce cancels out of the Facebook page and leans back in her chair. She lets out a long breath, closes her eyes and pinches the bridge of her nose as she taps her fingers on the arm of her chair. When she opens her eyes she glances over at the clock on her desk and remembers that at this moment, her daughter is alone, on a farm with this very girl who has half naked pictures of herself on the internet. The girl next door who obviously has no lines or boundaries when it comes to the decency of sexuality and has the proof of her depraved lifestyle displayed for anyone to see. She can only hope that she has taught her daughter the right ways of life and that she will not find herself in clutches of this deviant lifestyle.

It takes a while before Santana finally gets the hang of this whole country girl on a farm bit. Brittany takes her time showing the other girl how to properly pick up the smaller bales and lug them over towards the door. They work mostly in silence, little huffs and puffs for air to aide them in their exertion plus small remarks of how atrocious this activity is for Santana's personal grooming that she usually prides herself in. She even pokes fun at the tall blonde, not quite understanding how the most popular girl in school, head cheerleader and homecoming queen can be happier than a pig in shit working in, well, shit.

Santana lifts a small bale of hay onto the little stack she has created then leans against it to get her muscles ready for another round. She bends over to catch her breath, which only makes her realize how out of shape she is. It also doesn't help that the sun is insanely hot out today and no matter how high she puts her ponytail, it still sticks to her neck.

She breathes out in a huff and looks to the side to find Brittany standing just a few feet away, very still with her eyes closed and her face towards the sky. A small content smile dances over her lips and her blonde hair seems to glow in the late afternoon sun. Santana furrows her eyebrows, takes off her gloves and places them on the stack of hay just shy of her own petite height. Slowly, she walks over to Brittany, her curiosity getting the best of her.

"What are you doing?" Santana asks softly as not to startle her friend. Brittany looks over her shoulder to find Santana standing a little bit behind her and she offers her a small smile.

"Nothing." She replies, and the way she says it makes Santana think that's exactly what she means when she answers, 'nothing'. "I'm doing nothing and it feels great." She clarifies before turning her face to the sky once again and Santana can't help but grin at Brittany's innocence and simplicity for everything, life included. "Follow me." Brittany says turning her head to at Santana again and extends her hand for her to take. Santana's eyes flicker to the hand quickly then back up to those blues to give Brittany a questioning look. "Let's do nothing together." Her voice is kind, soft and welcoming that Santana can never imagine anyone turning this girl down when she speaks like this and looks the way she is looking at her right now, Santana included.

"Okay." Santana responds her voice barely there and then she carefully places her hand into Brittany's. She allows herself to be tugged along, being led out into the tall grass that hides all of the pretty flowers.

She doesn't question her, even when she notices how far they are from the barn and from Brittany's truck. Santana let's herself be led and she gets this funny feeling in her stomach when Brittany looks over her shoulder, smiles and squeezes her hand. Those blue eyes seem to sparkle with something that Santana has never noticed before but it makes her tear hers away and for some reason or another, she can feel a blush creeping up her neck.

"Here." Brittany waves her free hand towards a small patch of grass, a clearing that is hidden behind the tall grass and pretty flowers. "Lay down." She releases Santana's hand and walks to the middle of the clearing only to stop and lower her body to the ground where she lies down.

Santana watches for a few seconds, it isn't until the other girl pats the spot beside her that her legs finally begin to work again. She slowly brings herself to the ground, taking up the spot beside Brittany, letting the back of her head gently rest against the grass. They lie there in silence for a short while. Just breathing in the fresh air mixed with the scent of lavender, from the flowers, and looking up at the sky.

"Sometimes people forget what all of this stuff is really about." Brittany's voice breaks their comfortable and relaxing silence and Santana turns her head, squinting one eye shut to get a clear vision of the girl next to her. Blue eyes are staring up to the equally blue sky, as if looking for something in particular yet absolutely nothing at all.

"'This stuff'?" Santana inquires and Brittany merely nods, keeping her focus on the sky above them.

"Life… living." She replies with ease. "So… beautiful." She breathes out and Santana's eyebrows furrow in slight confusion and she turns her face back up where some fluffy white clouds are.

"The sky?" Santana wonders out loud.

"No." Brittany quickly answers. "I mean, yes, the sky _is_ beautiful but… I meant life." She looks to her left, her eyes rake over Santana's features before closing them once more and faces the sky again. "Everybody forgets how beautiful life is, how beautiful it can be." She decides on, letting the sun hit her eyelids and she smiles at the feeling. "The sky is beautiful, flowers are beautiful… I'm sure love is beautiful." She explains, letting the last part kind of hang in the air. Santana closes her eyes at her words trying to see this beauty that Brittany sees, even if only in her mind. Brittany moves her left hand from her stomach, lets it fall to the grass quietly and she looks over at Santana one more time. "You're beautiful." Brittany breathes out, her pinky catches Santana's and she hooks them together.

At the skin on skin contact and the words Santana's eyes flutter open and she turns her head to look in Brittany's direction. Their eyes lock and they just lie there for a little while longer staring at each other, pinkies linked. After losing the battle to will her focus to something other than those penetrating blue eyes, Santana clears her throat and shakes her head a few times.

"You shouldn't say things like that to me." Her voice comes out low and raspier than usual and with a little uncertainty. The strange feeling in her stomach slowly makes its way all throughout her body. Brittany blinks twice before she shifts her head on the grass to see Santana better.

"Why?" She asks straight faced.

"Because…" Santana tries to reason but all that gets her in response is an arched eyebrow. "Because, you say things and then I do things and… and I won't be able to take them back." She elaborates, all too well aware of Brittany's eyes flickering from her own and down to her lips.

"Maybe I don't want you to take them back." Brittany softly replies and shuffles her body a little closer to the girl next to her.

"What do you want?" Santana gulps through her words and lets out a ragged breath, licking her lips unconsciously as she watches Brittany moving over closer until their arms are touching.

"What do I want with life?" She asks herself, her eyes looking to the grass behind the Santana's head in thought. It's not the right question and both girls know this but before Santana can speak up Brittany answers her own question. "I want to be happy, I want to be successful, I want… I want to laugh until my sides hurt." Her eyes drift back down to meet Santana's. "I want to fall in love." She lets her eyes look deeper into Santana's and to be honest, she's not quite sure why. But she does it anyway.

"What do you want with _me_?" Santana swallows the lump in her throat as Brittany's face comes closer to her own.

"I…" The blonde breathes and the warm air hits Santana's lips. "I want…" Her eyes flicker down to those luscious lips that are slightly parted. "Ummm…"

One little motion forward is all it will take, they are barely an inch apart, their lips anyhow, it would be easy to lean forward and close the gap between them. But, there's a small glint of uncertainty Santana rarely sees in Brittany's eyes. She knows that this is not just another girl she's just met. Brittany is not another girl back home who is here for her enjoyment, not in the way she would normally have 'fun' with chicks. So, Santana clears her throat and pulls her head back.

"We should probably stop doing 'nothing'." She lets out with a small smile, trying to lighten the mood and the obvious tension she's been more often than not oblivious to. Brittany nods. "Sun is almost down anyway and Aunt Linda will kill me if I'm not home for dinner." She explains.

"Yeah, you're right." Brittany agrees, even though she can hear that twinge of relief mixed with disappointment in her tone. She pulls her pinky free from the Santana's and pushes herself up.

The sun is setting off in the distance as the girls drive back home. The ride is relatively silent except for the music playing softly in the background and their breathing. They're headed down their road coming up to Brittany's house in about a half of a mile.

"You can just pull into your driveway and I'll walk home." Santana tells her, their first form of conversation since the clearing.

"That's ridiculous, I can just drop you off." Brittany says through a chuckle.

"No seriously, it's pointless to have you do that just to have to turn around. I can walk." She insists.

"Well, then I'm walking you home." Brittany decides, clearly not offering the idea but stating it rather.

"I can walk myself Britt." Santana informs her, giving a quizzical stare, but when Brittany doesn't respond she sighs. "If you walk me home, then I'm gonna have to walk you home and we'll just keep doing that until we're old and can't walk anymore." She dramatically announces, finally getting a legitimate laugh from the girl beside her. "So how about you walk me home, stay for dinner and then we'll figure it out."

"No, I couldn't impose. Your aunt won't be happy about an unannounced guest for dinner." She shakes her head.

"Don't be silly, Aunt Linda loves you." Santana gushes. "Besides, it's the least I can offer the girl who walks me home. " She smiles kindly at Brittany, who sighs another chuckle.

"Okay, okay." Brittany finally complies and she pulls into her driveway. "Guess it works out." She sighs and points towards her own house when she turns the trucks engine off. "Parents aren't home anyway. I would have starved." She dramatically whines and both girls laugh at her.

They make their way over to the Lopez house, cutting through the bushes that separate their houses and right before the fence starts. They giggle and poke fun at one another, remembering past times of when they would find themselves hiding in these very bushes. They race in a quick walk up the steps, Brittany winning mostly due to the fact that she has longer limbs, and she taps the side of the door to prove her first place finish. Santana huffs but smirks as she pushes the front door open and waves for her friend to follow.

"Santana?" Aunt Linda calls out from the kitchen and Santana rolls her eyes because honestly, who else would it be?

"No, it's Santa Claus." Santana replies sarcastically, closing the door once she and Brittany are inside. "Ho. Ho. Ho." Brittany giggles as she follows her into the kitchen.

"Very funny." Linda retorts, only half amused by her niece's sense of humor. "How was… oh, hello Brittany." The older woman smiles, wipes her hands on the dish towel by the sink and waves once they're dry.

"Hello." Brittany waves in return, for some reason feeling nervous and shoves her hands into her back pockets.

"Oh yeah," Santana speaks up when her aunt looks back at her. "I invited Brittany to stay for dinner." She explains the blonde's presence, motioning towards her. Linda nods and continues to stare between the two girls.

"It's last minute, I should just go home and…"

"No." Both Lopez women interrupt her, glancing at one another.

"You are more than welcome to stay for dinner." Linda grins at her, turning to the counter to grab the casserole she'd prepared for dinner. "It's nice to have Santana finally inviting you over, officially." She glances at her niece as she heads through the kitchen to the dining room. "Get another place setting for your guest Santana. Come on Brittany, I want to hear all about you putting Tana to work, most likely against her will." Aunt Linda laughs out as Brittany follows her and Santana watches the two disappear into the other room, grinning to herself as she sees the way Brittany throws her head back laughing and helping her with the casserole dish.

The three of them sit around the table, Brittany rehashing every single second of the day at the barn to Aunt Linda, who is listening intently to each word. Santana just sits in silence and shovels food into her mouth as she is obviously the amusing part of dinner this evening. Every few moments Aunt Linda or Brittany gives her a look to assure her that they are merely laughing along with the events of the day and not at her.

"And finally she got the hang of it." Brittany beams over at Santana who is sitting across from her while Linda chuckles. The blonde blushes under the other girl's stare, averting her eyes to her glass and reaches out for it.

"Do you want some more lemonade Britt?" Santana asks, noticing the less than half filled glass.

"Oh, I can get it myself." Brittany places her glass back down and moves to get up, but Santana beats her to it, pushing her chair back and jumping up.

"No, I totally got it." Santana all but runs to the kitchen while Brittany and Aunt Linda stare at her.

"I've never seen Santana so attentive before." The older woman comments before moving back to eating the rest of her meal. "Maybe she _is_ changing." She shrugs.

"She's not changing." Brittany says matter of factly, her gaze fixed on the entrance of the kitchen, and a small smile tugs at the corners of her lips. "I think she's finding herself again." Aunt Linda, in mid chew, turns to look at her curiously.

"Alright Miss Pierce," Santana re-enters the dining room with a full glass of lemonade, placing it in front of her dinner guest. "Here is you refreshed drink." She grins.

"Thank you." Brittany smiles at her friend and then at the glass.

"So what did I miss?" Santana asks as she takes her seat again. Aunt Linda raises her eyebrows and shakes her head.

"I have no idea." She mumbles under her breath.

Dinner continues on, eventually, with the conversation turning to Brittany and dance, which entertains both Santana and Aunt Linda. When they are finished the girl's clean up the table together, while Linda prepares three bowls of chocolate ice cream.

"Thanks so much for having me for dinner." Brittany says softly, as Santana grabs the dishes from her hands.

"It's not over yet. Dinner first and now, dessert." Santana smirks.

"Okay, ladies," Aunt Linda calls out with a claps of her hands to get their attention. "Eat up before it melts." She tells them, grabbing a bowl for herself and motions with her spoon to the other two. "Santana, you can do the dishes after ice cream."

"Oh really? Can I?" Santana mocks enthusiasm.

"You have your father's humor." Linda bites back, waving her spoon in the air as she disappears into the living room.

Santana grabs the two bowls, handing one to Brittany and then the same with the spoon, before leading the way to the living room where her aunt is. The three enjoy a short television program for a half hour, Aunt Linda tossing a quirked eyebrow in the direction of the teenagers as they giggle and goof around beside her.

"Alright girls," Aunt Linda pushes herself up, slapping her nieces thigh. "I'm off to bed." She leaves the two.

"Yea," Brittany lightly claps her hands together and then rubs them on her thighs. "I should probably get going." She announces as she gets up from the couch.

"Oh, okay." Santana is slightly caught off guard, not really ready to part with her friend just yet. "You're parents are probably wondering where you are." She remembers that Brittany's parents, well, mother is probably not too keen on her being over at Santana's until all hours of the night.

"Well, I guess I'll see you bright and early in the morning?" Brittany says as she reaches the front door of the Lopez house. Santana smiles, nods and leans in the door way.

"Sure thing." She waves as the Brittany steps out onto the front porch. "Hey." Santana calls out and walks a step out onto the porch as well, getting Brittany to turn back to face her. "Why is it that your mom hates my guts?" Brittany's eyebrows furrow, her head tilts and she chuckles.

"She doesn't hate you." The cheerleader offers innocently. But when Santana's hands fly to her hips and a stern look takes over her features, Brittany looks over to the hedges where her house is hidden behind. "She's just protective I guess." Her shoulders shrug and her feet scuff the wood of the porch.

Santana nods. She understands. It's too late to get into a big conversation about all of this. She's pretty certain that after the exertion her body went through today, she does not at all have the energy to enter into any form of debate. The fact that Mrs. Pierce is 'protective' is true, but only to some extent. There are certain parts of this big Texas life that a good Christian mother would not approve of. But, that's probably an argument she'd lose to the majority.

"Well, have a good night." Santana tells Brittany and steps back into the door way, ready to close the door.

"Sweet dreams." Brittany says softly and then disappears into the night.

* * *

><p>Mr. and Mrs. Pierce take their usual seats on the bleachers. Three rows back and to the right just in front of the cheerleading squad. Mrs. Pierce spots her neighbor's niece walk out from the tunnel and up towards the stands. She watches as the young girl stops at the fence, leans on the metal bar that separates the bleachers from the field and how her daughter runs over to greet her. Brittany smiles wildly up at the Lopez girl, who is leaning over the railing, bringing their faces closer. Her eyes squint under the bright lights of the Friday night game at their home field as she sees her daughter lift her hand up to the bar and pat Santana's hand affectionately.<p>

Something funny must have been said because Brittany tosses her head back and that angelic giggle pops from her lips. Mayor Pierce clenches her jaw and lightly shakes her head from side to side. All she can see are the images from Santana's Facebook page and she wonders if anyone else in the crowd has as well. If they have, then they'd know the depraved lifestyle the Lopez girl leads and how she clearly has no clear defined sexuality which is not as God had intended. For all Annie Pierce knows, anyone who is privy to the porn like webpage this girl has, might think that her own precious daughter also lives this sinful lifestyle.

Unaware of the death stare she is receiving from her friend's mother, Santana turns and sits on the edge of the first row of bleachers. Soon enough the game starts and she stares on, pretending to watch as the crowd around her goes wild. Her gaze falls down to the ground just below the risers. Out on the track, only a jump over a tiny fence and a few feet away is where her eyes land. The cheerleaders are jumping up and down in place, clapping their hands and she can only assume it is because something goo happened on the field. Her lips twist and her focus remains on that blonde ponytail moving up and down, swaying side to side. Brittany turns to her right, Quinn is there, and the way she smiles, nods and the way her eyebrows raise bring a tiny smirk to Santana's lips.

Her hands get shoved into the pockets of her jacket and her legs cross at her knee. She decides to look down the field to see what the big deal is and finds the team setting up some sort of play right by the goal. Brittany turns her head and smiles to herself. There, just beyond the fence that separates the track from the bleachers is Santana. She can tell that the girl in the stands is feigning interest in the actual game.

Inside, she laughs at how her friend scrunches her nose, the way her eyebrows crinkle together in the middle and how her lips part a bit in confusion. It's cute and she can't really explain why it is such a thing. Why it has to be cute that Santana is here, watching a sport she not only doesn't like, but doesn't even understand. Why is it cute that she is sitting by herself, watching a bunch of 'stupid boys' run around hitting each other over a ball? Probably because the she knows the real reason Santana is here in spite of the fact that she hates sports.

Quinn glances to her left as she claps her pom-poms together, slowly bringing her jumping to an end, and catches a smirk on Brittany's lips. She quirks an eyebrow when she watches her friend look over her shoulder and wave goofily at whoever she is looking at. Quinn takes a quick look to spot Santana sending a wave back at Brittany and she awkwardly smiles to herself.

It's not strange for Brittany to be cheering for a game and making time to send casual waves and glances to any Knox City fan in the stands. So, Quinn honestly should not think anything of it. But, she can't help but do anything except question it. She's been watching and noticing things ever since Santana rolled back into town with the way Brittany has seemed to fall back into everything that was way back when.

Just a few seats away, Mayor Pierce watches the way Santana pays no mind to the game going on. How she smirks in the direction of the cheerleaders and how her short skirt seems to catch the attention of the boys sitting a few rows behind her. The older woman shakes her head in disapproval and tries to turn her focus back to the game and her daughter cheering on the boys. She wonders if there is a way for her to keep this budding friendship between Brittany and Santana from growing. To hopefully stop it from taking a road that would leave her daughter as a snapshot on the Facebook page of 'Snixx-Pez'.

"Go Finn!" Carol Hudson's cheer for her son breaks Annie Pierce from her thoughts and she looks over to where the quarterback's mother claps frantically. She turns back to the field and finds Finn Hudson fist pumping after throwing a touchdown. The corners of her mouth turn up and she grins.

When the game ends, the fans find their way down from the stands and out into the parking lot with the rest of Knox City, along with some parents and fans from the opposing school. Knox City citizens are in brighter spirits seeing as their boys have brought in yet another victory, nearly cementing their position for playoffs in a few weeks to come. The boys head off to the locker rooms, shouting and hooting over their win while the cheerleaders congregate just outside of the tunnel that connects the parking lot to the field. They are all smiles and chatty about the win, but more so about how awesome it will be to go to the playoffs for the third year in a row.

As the crowd thins and the players come out to either greet their parents, friends or girlfriends, Santana stands just outside of the tunnel and off to the side. She watches as Mike and Tina meet up for a kiss and she sees the way Tina swipes her thumb over Mike's lips afterwards. Artie rolls up a few moments later to congratulate his friend on another great game while Kurt stands fashionably casual beside him. On the other side of the lot she spots Finn Hudson walk up to his mother who happens to be in a conversation with the Pierce's and Sherriff Hummel.

Before she can look away from them, she notices Brittany bouncing over in their direction as well. Her mother throws her arm around her shoulder and pulls her in to a tight and uncomfortable looking hug. Her nose scrunches at the awkward moment and wonders if Mrs. Pierce is a cold stone robot, unable to produce a human emotion because she's sure grade A bitch isn't an actual emotion. The tall, blonde cheerleader looks around the parking lot and doesn't stop searching until her eyes fall onto Santana. She smiles, a real smile. Not the fake one she gave when her mother tried to show her affection, and she waves the shorter girl over.

With hesitation, Santana finally unglues her feet from the dirt ridden cement and makes her way over towards the strange group. She puts on the best smile she can come up with that doesn't spew that much venom and even tops it off with a 'friendly' wave. Brittany steps away from her parents and in the direction of Santana while her mother watches on intently.

"Hey." Brittany greets, taking a step towards Santana so she is standing beside her. She bumps her shoulder into the shorter girl's shoulder and smiles at the way her friend shoves her hands into her jacket pockets.

"Hey." Santana says back, sending a smile right back at her and then awkwardly glances around, nodding as she does trying not to lock eyes with the ice woman from next door.

"Santana, I didn't know you liked football." Mayor Pierce asks, her voice loud enough to get everyone in the little group to turn their attention to the teenager. Santana's plans to avoid eye contact clearly broken, and she sends the woman a smirk.

"I don't." She tells the Mayor of Knox City. Annie Pierce nods, showing she hears the girl, but her eyes give away that she begs to differ.

"It seemed you were enjoying yourself though." Mrs. Pierce points out matter of factly and Santana shrugs, sending a quick glance over at Brittany.

"What can I say?" Santana starts with a subtle wink at her blonde friend. "I can appreciate some team spirit." She states straightforwardly, but with a smug tone in her voice. "You ready?" She asks Brittany with excitement. "I told Quinn we'd wait for her by your truck." She explains, pointing over her shoulder where the powder blue truck is parked.

"Oh, alright." Brittany replies in a quieter tone and sends a tight lipped smile to the group a little behind her. "So, let's go then." She motions for them to make their move and Santana doesn't question it. She actually wonders if saying 'Quinn' was like saying Voldormort in front of Mayor Pierce.

"Where are you off to now?" Mr. Pierce asks with a laugh. "It's just like when you two were little, always running off to get into something." He jokes and his daughter chuckles with uncertainty.

"We're just going to grab a bite." Brittany tells him as she continues to walk away, not wanting to give her mother the chance to stop her. She knows that whenever she and her mother are in the company of the Hudson's, the woman is always trying to play matchmaker.

"Those girls used to be attached at the hip." Joe Pierce adds, even though the girls in question are long gone. Mrs. Pierce looks over at Finn who nods in agreement and is obviously watching on as her daughter vanishes beyond the crowd of Knox.

"Sorry my parents are so weird." Brittany mumbles when they hop into her truck. Santana shrugs her shoulders as she slips into her seat and shuts the door.

"They're not weird." Santana tells her, but then laughs at her own statement. "Well, your mom is, but your dad's cool." They both laugh until there is a light tap on the passenger door with a smiling Quinn on the other side.

Their destination is an easy decision. Carmel's. Even though they will most likely be running into a bunch of kids from their school, the craving for a milkshake from Carmel's is too strong to fight. Even with the blaring lights from the overcrowded lot of the popular burger joint, Santana can't turn away her need for a malted beverage and some fries. Brittany pulls her powder blue pick-up into slot three, between two other trucks containing groups of kids from their school, and the three girls jump out to sit in the bed of the truck.

A boy on skates rolls on over to greet them and get their typical order of three strawberry shakes, three fries and four bacon cheeseburgers. As he skates away to put in their order, they glance around the parking lot at the various groups of teenagers around them. There are a lot of football players and cheerleaders and then the odd gang of other students from Knox City High School.

"So, nearly four months in," Quinn changes the subject from Brittany and Santana's debate over X-men characters to a completely different topic once their food arrives. "Still wanna go home?" She asks Santana after tapping her leg to get her attention. Brittany bites her burger and she watches Santana swallow the bits of fries in her mouth before she answers.

"Uh," Santana sips her shakes and looks down at her untouched bacon cheeseburger. "Yeah, actually." She lets out with a cough and Quinn chuckles to herself. "I mean, you guys are great." She tries to quickly clarify that her current company has nothing to do with her desire to go back to Boston. "You're definitely making it more tolerable to be here." Santana adds with a shrug of her shoulders as she lifts her burger to her mouth.

"Wow." Quinn laughs out. "You're too sweet." She shakes her head and turns her attention full onto the food on her lap.

"It's not like you would stay here if you had the choice." Santana points out matter of factly. Brittany looks between the two as she munches on her fries.

"I don't have it as easy as you. I don't have a time limit to be here and then get shipped off." Quinn bites back. Santana snorts and rolls her eyes as she shakes her head, meanwhile Brittany glances over her shoulder in hopes to avoid a silly fight.

"Really?" Santana asks incredulously getting the attention of both blondes. "I was unaware that you were stuck here forever and ever." She laughs with sarcastic amusement and continues to chow down on her burger and French fries.

"What is it that you want to get back to so bad?" Quinn continues and sits up in her spot on the bed of the truck. "I mean, you don't have anyone back home. You've made that super clear." She rolls her eyes as she recounts the way Santana is totally anti-relationship. Brittany shifts awkwardly in her spot, sifts through her fries as she tries to avoid being sucked into this conversation.

Santana sighs, looks around and shakes her head. She notices the groups of people around them, the jocks sitting in all of their way too expensive trucks and how they are talking loudly about football and getting on with girls. The cheerleaders who are hanging on all of them and their words even though most of the things they are saying are crude and not very Christian. This town, it's not her. Even though the two girls she is currently in the company of have been making Knox an easier trip to take, she's not a southern belle with priorities of being prim and proper. Mommy and daddy are not waiting up for her to get home after the big Friday game. Mommy and daddy didn't care much when she was home let alone several states and a time difference away.

"Whatever." Quinn gives up and goes back to her food. She didn't mean to get into it with Santana, but this moody version of her childhood friend is so very hard to read.

"You guys ready for the fair?" Brittany finally speaks up, completely changing the topic and trying to smooth out the wrinkly tension. Quinn and Santana both shrug their shoulders, focusing more on their shakes and French fries than each other.

"I guess so." Quinn mumbles, some burger still in her mouth. "My mom is in charge of the pie tent." She rolls her eyes because this is the third fair in a row that the Fabray's are going to be serving pies out to the Knox City public.

"I probably don't have much of a choice." Santana groans. Aunt Linda has probably signed her up to clothe the homeless youth of Knox.

"It should be super fun this year." Brittany beams. "My mom seems real excited." She hums out, enjoying her food very much.

"Yay." Santana laughs at Quinn's faux excitement and sure enough, the two have forgotten about the almost argument from a few moments ago.

"Hey Pierce." Finn's voice comes barreling over the other loud mouth student body of Knox City High School and his oafish body nearly slams into the back of her truck.

"Uh, hey Finn." Brittany half smiles and waves at the way too tall teenage boy.

"So, I was thinking that when we get to the playoffs your cheerleaders and the team should have a hotel party." He sends her a stupid looking smirk and he tries to casually lean further onto her truck but he looks awkward.

"Oh." Brittany glances over in Quinn's direction, but the girl is pretending to talk to Santana about something. "I guess I'll talk to the squad about it." She offers. Finn smiles and nods, staring at Brittany's legs for a little too long.

"Hudson!" Another jock comes barreling into him and it's quite obvious, to Santana anyway, that this kid is a little drunk. "What are you doing over here at reject central?" He asks, motioning towards Santana and Quinn who both give him a dirty look. "What are you staring at new girl?"

"Karofsky, she's friends with Britt." Finn says as he pushes his buddy off of him. "And," He sends Santana an uncomfortable smile. "Any friend of Britt Pierce's is a friend of mine." Santana scoffs at the way this boy has absolutely no skills in the impressing of the ladies.

"The hit it and quit it kind, right Finny boy!" Karofsky hollers and slaps his friend on the back, getting a small chuckle out of the team captain.

"Fat chance dough boy." Santana spits out catching the small group off guard. Quinn laughs to herself, Karofsky raises an eyebrow at the challenge, Finn's jaw drops and Brittany smirks.

"You should probably take him home Finn." Brittany breaks up the possible fight. "Before he starts saying more things he knows nothing about." She gives Finn a good hard look and within seconds he nods and drags his teammate away from the powder blue truck and far from the three girls.

"Hey, I gotta get home soon." Quinn tells her friends as she gathers the garbage from their food. "I'll throw this stuff out and then we can head out?" Brittany nods and watches as Quinn hops from the back of her truck and walk over to the garbage which happens to be right by where the jocks are sitting.

Santana notices how the guys from the football team are howling and saying things to Quinn. She's sure she heard them call her 'preggers' and the 'Virgin Mary', an obvious poke at her being pregnant a few years back. Quinn takes it all in stride, telling the dark haired girl that this is something she has gotten used to since the pregnancy.

The ride home is quiet for Santana, she just listens to the girls chattering about cheerleading and the playoffs. She wonders how Quinn does it. Lives in this world where she is practically the butt of some joke gone wrong. Kids are mean, that's for certain. But, Mrs. Pierce comes to her mind and she thinks about what Brittany had told her. How her mother had pretty much black mailed her into leaving her best friend in the entire world because of the situation she had fallen into.

With a million and one things running through her brain, before she can zero in on a specific one, Quinn has been dropped off and the powder blue pick-up truck is parked in front of the Pierce house. It's not quiet, Brittany is actually talking a little bit about the fair coming up and then how at Thanksgiving she is going to the church for the soup kitchen. She comments about how it's not much of a soup kitchen but more of a little party for the people in their town to have a little pre-party before going home for dinner.

"Do you want to come over for a bit?" Santana jumps in before Brittany can venture on to another topic of conversation. The cheerleader looks to her house, noticing the light in the living has been turned off.

"Uh, yeah. Sure." She nods and unbuckles her seat belt, even though the truck has not been running for over ten minutes.

They walk around the hedges, kicking rocks and pebbles along the way and talking about how night time is getting cooler recently. The front door to the Lopez house is unlocked, which doesn't much surprise Brittany, but she laughs when Santana comments that in Boston doors have several locks. They remain quiet because it's apparent that Aunt Linda is asleep and probably has been for a while.

In a decision made by Brittany, Santana finds herself being sucked into a movie that the two used to watch when they were little. It's 'Teen Witch', a movie that they had found in Aunt Linda's collection from even before they were born, but absolutely fell for. Santana feels like she's slipped back in time when she catches herself grinning from ear to ear and swaying to the musical number that is currently on the screen. It feels like those times when they were single digits, up way beyond their bedtime and soon could be found under the coffee table.

"When this is over," Santana says softly, not wanting to interrupt any bit of the movie she hasn't seen in years. "I have an idea of what we can do next." Brittany eyes her curiously, a small smile on her lips, and sees a little sparkle in her friend's eyes. Something she hasn't seen since they had last watched this movie.

* * *

><p>Aunt Linda wakes in the middle of the night for her usual glass of water. It's silly really, that she doesn't bring one with her before bed, but she reasons it lets her make sure her home is still standing. It is dark as she makes her down the hallway and as she turns into the kitchen she checks the time on the microwave. She grabs a glass and sets it under the faucet letting the water run until the glass is full.<p>

She turns the water off and as she lifts the glass to her lips, she pauses. Her head cranes towards the direction of the living room where she hears quiet whispers and soft giggles. With a furrowed brow, she carefully maneuvers her way through the dark house until coming to the entrance of the living room. Her eyes squint, hand comes up to rest on the wall and she holds her breathe. She doesn't see anyone, but she knows who it is and she grins because this moment brings back memories from so long ago.

A few feet away, hidden by the couch where the coffee table usually is but is now pushed closer towards the television, she notices two streams of light. It's like a blast from the past for Aunt Linda and she recalls numerous nights from years ago at seeing this sight practically every other night.

"Did she ever find her prince?" Her musings are interrupted when she hears her niece's soft but unmistakable raspy voice. She watches the lights on the ceiling above them dance around each other, dip into each other and the shadows from hands and fingers that appear.

"She never found him, but, she also never stopped searching." Brittany breathes out. Aunt Linda can see her hopeful smile as she speaks so clearly in her mind. "She knew she'd die still loving him and he her. So, that was worth it I suppose." Brittany sighs.

"That's a really sad story Britt." Aunt Linda has to suppress a laugh when she hears the disappointment in Santana's voice. She's still that little girl deep down who wants to believe in fairytales and happy endings alike. Regardless of the way she scowls.

"But, they loved one another and they never stopped." Brittany reminds her.

"True, but they spent the rest of their lives alone. Never being able to be with their true love." Santana explains, still not accepting the end of the story she's just heard.

"Are you really 'alone' though? You know, when you are loved so much and love in return so equally?" Brittany counters, sincerely curious of her friend's answer and thoughts. "I think it's sadder to never have what they had. Sure, they never got to drive off into the sunset, but, the time they did have together changed them so dramatically. They found what so many people only dream to catch a glimpse of." The cheerleader says softly and one of the flashlights starts to move side to side.

Aunt Linda stands still, a small smile on her lips and her eyes drift from the ceiling to the tops of flashlights that she can see. She hears a long sigh and cranes her neck to hear whatever it is that is going to be said next.

"You're really kind of smart Brittany." She hears her niece mutter affectionately and Brittany scoffs at the statement.

"Shut up." Linda hears a soft slap of a playful tap.

"No, I'm being serious." Santana says. "I mean, you really look at things, differently than most people. You make all this shit, the bad and the not so bad sound so… beautiful."

"My mom says I live in my own world." Brittany admits shyly after some silence.

"Well, if that's the case, I want to live in _your_ world." Aunt Linda smiles, the corners of her mouth quiver at Santana's almost silent confession. "She shakes er head at herself, realizing that she has been standing here and eavesdropping for too long.

On the way back to her bedroom with the smile still etched on her face, Brittany's words echo in her mind. Perhaps the blonde girl from next door is right after all. Santana is not changing, but merely finding who she once was and is supposed to be. Tonight, through the simple act of listening, Aunt Linda caught a flash of the little girl she once knew. The little girl who dreamed, wished, laughed and smiled. And although it was only a glimpse, it was beautiful.


	7. Chapter 7

**No Matter What Would Come Her Way**

_**June, 2004**_

_Santana remembered how she stood next to the seat her brother was sitting in. They had gotten up so early that morning, but, she didn't mind. Actually, she couldn't even sleep the night before she was so excited. She'd gotten up extra early just to make the very sign she was holding in her hands, with hope that it'd be one of the first things he'd see when he got off of the plane._

_She doesn't really remember much of when her Uncle Roger left for the Marines. She was pretty young when 9/11 happened. But, she did know it was a big and very scary deal. The day he left for boot camp, Aunt Linda was so sad and she remembered how she and her mother tried to occupy her mind with other things. Santana tried her best to make her smile._

_Fiddling with the oak tag in her hands, Santana glanced over at Aunt Linda, who clutched a fist full of Kleenex against her mouth. She wondered why things got to adults so much. What anything sad made grownups more depressed than anyone else she knew. Uncle Roger was coming home. Maybe not for good, said her mother, but he was going to be spending November in Knox City. So, why were the adults so, morose?_

_As she muddled over these thoughts on the sad verse happy tears, she almost missed it. In the blink of an eye, Aunt Linda was sprinting away from the rest of the family and weaving in and out of the tiny airport's crowd. It was easy to figure it out, she'd spotted Uncle Roger._

_As soon as he saw Linda, he dropped his duffle bag and opened his arms for her to jump into him. Then, it was like all of the sound in the entire world had faded away and there was no one else in the airport but them. Santana was mesmerized by the way it felt so cinematic._

_Suddenly, her sign welcoming her uncle back didn't seem like the most important and first thing he needed to see. Instead, she was comfortable settling on watching the way her aunt smiled through tears. How she pulled her head back from their embrace to look at his face and the way her fingers ran through his shorter than usual hair._

_That year, the Annual Knox City Late Fall Fair was the best one that Santana could ever remember being to, as well as the last. It was also Uncle Roger's last. He died in late March later that year while overseas._

_When Santana and her family returned for their yearly visit in the middle of June that same year, the change in the air at Aunt Linda's was palpable. Even for a nine year old, Santana could sense the shift in the house she had always considered her second home. Her parents tried to make the vacation seem like they had in the past, but it was only a few months ago that they were standing in the living room of Linda's after Uncle Roger's funeral._

_Unable to sit in the uncomfortable silence created by the adults who didn't know what to say, Santana settles for going out across the road where the tire swing was. She kicks the dirt in the road, some pebbles flickering off in all different directions as she makes her way towards the misshapen tree. If she is going to have to settle for silence, she may as well be in her self made quiet. _

_Before she could even stick her legs through the hole in tire, she turns when she hears the familiar sound of feet scuffling across the dirt road she just traveled on. It's Brittany, the girl from up the road, holding a tentative smile on her face as she walks closer to Santana. They wave to one another, even letting out soft 'hello's' as the distance between them minimizes._

_When Santana settles on the tire swing, Brittany takes up the job of pushing it gently. Every now and again, both girls chance glances over in the direction of the sad cloud hovering over Aunt Linda's house and twist their lips in defeat. At only nine, they feel completely powerless which seems odd because they always felt invincibly strong._

"_Play her some music." Brittany muses after a few more beats of silence. It was simply. Almost silly. _

_How could music make Aunt Linda smile? Could a song take away the pain, even if only for a little while? Santana twists her lips in thought and they don't talk against for a little while. Brittany's mother eventually calls her in for dinner. Before the little blonde girl leaves, she says she'll call her friend after and then she runs off, hops over the tiny curb and vanishes into the house._

_Later that night, with the dark and stillness of sleep floating through the house, Santana wakes up. It was odd, because after such a long day, she figures her body would be exhausted. But, there she was, wide awake staring at her bedroom window. Quietly, she pads down the hallway, taking note of the silence through the rest of the home. When she comes into the living room, she stops and looks around. It's the same as it looked earlier, yesterday and even last year. _

_Her uncle's guitar rests on its stand and his work boots are under the table next to it. The room, the home actually, still smells like him. A mix of sweat and grease from working on his bike, with a hint of his manly body wash._

_She moves towards the guitar and lets her fingers touch the strings he would never pluck again. They are rough and it makes her wonder if that was why his hands were so callously. Her father says a man's hand is like sandpaper because he works hard for his family. She contemplates the idea of being a musician and if it would be considered 'hard work'._

_Probably not to her father, but, she thought that Uncle Roger is… was a 'hard worker'. He played music and fixed cars and bikes. Doing two things at one time has to fall into that category. It would be nice to find someone like Uncle Roger to spend the rest of days with. She figures that's why Aunt Linda loved him most out of anyone._

_A sound from the end of the hall catches her ear and she quickly pulls her hand back from the guitar. The strings gently hum at the way her fingers had slightly stuck to them and caused them to vibrate softly. Curious, she heads down the hall towards the muffled noise until coming to the partially opened door of her aunt's bedroom._

_It's the unmistakable sound of crying with the desperate attempt to be quiet about it. She bites her lower lip and her feet come together as thumbs on a hand would, with uncertainty. It's sad. That is fact. There are not many times that Santana can recall seeing her aunt cry or be so unhappy. But the recent turn of events has pretty much made up for that. The urge to make Aunt Linda a little less sad is too strong and she rushes, quietly, back to her room to brainstorm. Her eyes scan her dimly lit room, thanks to her nightlight, to look for an answer. Then, that's when she sees it. It's cleared jeweled case glimmers under the bit of moonlight peeking through her window. She grabs it and creeps her way back to Aunt Linda's room._

_With a soft tap on the frame, she pushes the door open some more, just enough for her little body to fit. Instantly, Aunt Linda looks up and tries her best to wipe away her tears._

"_Santana?" She says in a tired and confused voice as she looks from her niece to the clock on her nightstand. "It's late, you should be in bed." Linda tells her and ruffles the covers away from her body._

"_I can't sleep." Santana explains as she twists the bottom of her shirt in her hand and holds the jewel case in the other. "You're crying." Even for a nine year old, she knows that was kind of obvious and silly to point out. But, it feels like her only option. Linda nods, but even still, tries at a smile for the sake of the young girl. "I miss Uncle Roger." Her aunt's face instantly falls, pained by the little girl's admission, regardless how obvious._

"_I know sweetie." She whispers in exhaustion and shuffles on the bed. "What's that?" She jerks her head in the direction of Santana's hand as she brings both of her own hands to her cheeks to wipe more tears._

"_I wanted to show you something." Santana tells her and walks over to the DVD player. Aunt Linda watches curiously as she pops the case open and places a disc into the player tray. "I promised Uncle Roger I wouldn't show you this until…" She pauses, because even __**she**__ knows she shouldn't bring up the wedding that will now, never happen. "I hope he doesn't get mad." She pouts and shrugs her shoulders. "But… you're so sad." She says and takes the spot closest to Linda on the bed._

_The DVD plays and the first image to come on the screen is Santana and Brittany, dancing around and using hair brushes as microphones singing their hearts out. Off camera, is the sound of Roger's distinct laugh and the picture shakes a little._

_After a few minutes of just Santana and the girl from up the road, Brittany asks Roger for the camera, telling whoever is listening that she loves filming things with her stuffed animals and Quinn. Aunt Linda chuckles, a normal reaction whenever Brittany says anything. The camera pans back and after some jumbling, it stills, leaving the focus of the frame being Santana and Uncle Roger. _

_Santana has her head resting on Aunt Linda's chest, her ear to where her heart beats, and she feels the intake of a deep breath at the sight of Uncle Roger. Linda's arms wrap tightly around her niece as they continue to watch the child made home movie._

_Brittany says action and Roger starts to play a song that Santana knows by heart. Aunt Linda grins through tear filled eyes when Brittany whispers to herself and the viewers that Santana has a Disney Princess voice._

"_Are you gonna sing to Miss Linda at your wedding?" Brittany asks, zooming in on Santana's face as she looks over at her uncle who continues to strum lightly on his guitar._

_The duo watch the rest of the twenty minute video in silence. Content with listening to the sound of Uncle Roger's voice being the last thing to hear before going to sleep. A few hours later, Santana realizes that she must have fallen asleep. The room is still illuminated by the television screen but there are no voices filling her ears. Instead, she can hear the gentle noises of Aunt Linda breathing softly, letting her know her aunt is sleeping. _

_She looks over to the television across the room, finding that her aunt had paused it. There, on the screen in Aunt Linda's television at four in the morning is Uncle Roger with a big smile on his face and his guitar in his arms. Her heart swelled, but only momentarily, for she realized that this is now the only way she will ever be able to see her uncle again. But not just her, Aunt Linda too. _

_It was then, at four in the morning in June that Santana got her first taste of a broken heart._

* * *

><p><strong>Then I Was Young and Unafraid<strong>

_**November, 2011**_

The buzzing in her hand reminds her that she has her weekly meeting with the town's resident OCD case. If there is anything besides football that Santana would like to avoid, it's her Wednesday get togethers with Emma Pillsbury. Sure, the woman is nice enough, but the fact that she even has a social worker is the problem. Maybe she was a rebellious teenager back in Boston, but she is finding it hard to find her bearings here in the sticks to be even remotely insubordinate.

A few weeks ago she actually _tried_ to miss her meeting with Miss Pillsbury, but it got way too boring walking around aimlessly that she wound up getting to her office early. It was almost embarrassing for her to even admit to her aunt when she had called her to come pick her up early. So much for being a badass. Normally, back home, she didn't have to try so hard. Being a bad kid came second nature to a girl like Santana. The only times she even went to school in Boston was because she was too buzzed to go home or because she and Puck would steal some pot from the local stoner.

With this sadness of no longer being even a fraction of the girl she was back home, she meanders away from her new school and towards the football field where she can hear the sounds of cracks and booms from the gridiron. The only sound that is appealing is that of the cheerleaders practicing and giggling. At least she can catch a glimpse of some leggy chicks before she heads off to her head shrunk by little miss crazy herself.

But, as she is about to make her way through the bars and blockades that make up the stadium bleachers, her Tana-senses perk up. She whips her head in the direction of a familiar scent and the corners of her lips turn up. Completely disregarding her initial goal of ogling cheerleaders, she allows her sense of smell to lead the way to her newest needed destination. Just as expected, she finds a tiny group of misfits in a loose circle.

"Hey," One of the boys says as she walks up to them. "You're that chick in my P.E. class." He notes, pointing to her with a stoned smile on his face. Santana nods, hoping to not really get into the sophisticated or philosophical conversations that sometimes moments like this can arise to.

"Any chance I can get in on this?" She asks, trying her best at sweet. They all stare back at her, seemingly interested but almost too high to really care. The boy who recognizes her pulls the sleeve of his very worn in zip up sweatshirt up and delicately offers the joint to her.

"Ladies first." He says in a chivalrous tone. Her lips are practically watering, it's been so long since she's had the sweet taste of marijuana on her tongue and the disarray it causes in her mind.

"You're supposed to pass to the left." One of the other boys points out defensively, seeing as he was next in line.

"Oh," The first boy realizes and then giggles before turning around until Santana is now on his left. "There you go." If she was stoned, she would have probably laughed, but she is growing increasingly impatient. "Dude," He slaps his friend in the chest after Santana takes the offered substance from between his fingers. "This is why girls don't talk to you." He tells him.

"It's puff, puff, pass bro." He reminds the ginger haired boy as he rubs his chest.

"When you're a gentleman it's puff, puff, lady." He grins wildly and motions towards Santana who is enjoying her third intake, relishing in the mist as it slips from her lips. "And what a fine lady at that." He adds, turning his full attention to her, watching the way she passes the joint on to the kid who impatiently waited his turn.

"What's your name?" A third boy chimes in, his eyes shamelessly looking her up and down.

"My name is irrelevant." She says with a smirk and a head tilt. After a few moments, the ginger haired kid busts out a hearty laugh.

"You're that Lopez girl." He snaps his fingers and points to her again. She doesn't confirm nor deny the fact, just settles for watching him work that last brain cell he clearly has left.

"Are you gonna be a gentleman this time?" Santana asks the boy who only moments ago complained about him getting skipped. With a quirked eyebrow and a misleading wink, he quickly hands over the joint back to Santana.

"Your name is 'Irrelevant Lopez'?" That third boy asks, patiently waiting for his turn after Santana. Not expecting the absurd but should have been expected question, she nearly chokes on the smoke she's just sucked in and lets out a cough filled laugh.

"Here." She says, her throat still closed up from laughing and smoking at the same time. The third boy gratefully takes the nearly withering joint and nods his head in thanks.

After a few more hits, she stood there and watched the four boys finish off a second joint. It's been a while since she's taken part in any kind of illegal substance, and she wasn't really banking on it hitting her so hard. But now, as she's walking towards Main Street, she realizes she did not take that into consideration. It's a little past four in the afternoon and she's more than missed her weekly meeting with Miss Pillsbury.

For a moment, she grins, feeling triumphant that she has finally been able to sort of retouch her stone of badassery. But, then she spots Aunt Linda's truck and that golden victory immediately rushes away from her body and is replaced by the cold feeling of doom. She drops her head, a little bit happy that her high has pretty much faded away on her travels from school and into town. But also a little sad that she can't be numb and high as a fucking kite while she receives the wrath that awaits her.

Aunt Linda jumps out of the driver's seat and marches her little body up to Santana, grabbing the young girl by the strap of her bag. Only pausing for a moment to turn and sniff the air around her niece. This only makes her shake her head even more. Santana's quick to keep up with Aunt Linda and her short legs, but the woman's definitely got some strength to her. After practically shoving Santana into the passenger side of the truck, she slams the door and stalks towards the driver's side once again.

The ride is mostly silent, safe for a few huffs and slams against the steering wheel from Aunt Linda. If something like this were to happen back in Boston, she'd be hearing an earful from her mom like a week after said incident. But, she's figuring Aunt Linda is taking her father's approach and is not going to say one fucking word. She finds it kind of humorous. No wonder she's such a fuck up. No one can even call her out on her bullshit.

Well, she thinks that for now.

When they pull into the driveway, Aunt Linda throws the truck into park and kills the engine. She's just about to get out when she feels her aunt's hand on her arm and the woman mutters 'stay'. Linda's head is straight, her jaw is clenched and she removes her hand from Santana's arm and runs it through her own hair.

"Why are you doing this?" Aunt Linda asks, the words coming out slowly and through her teeth like a hiss.

"What are you talking about?" Santana asks incredulously. Playing dumb sometimes helps her case.

"You reek of pot." She points out in an obvious tone. "I'm not an idiot Santana. And I also know you have probably been to Stars Lake, so don't try and tell me you haven't had any alcohol since you've been here." She snaps her gaze in Santana's direction, instantly catching her niece's guilt written in her eyes.

"Whatever." Santana sighs in annoyance. She's totally over these adults telling her 'right' and 'wrong'. "Half the kids in this town do the same shit!" She shouts back in equal frustration. "There's nothing else to do!"

"Are you ever going to learn?" She asks in harsh frustration. Santana's eyes widen slightly, not at all prepared for an authoritative Aunt Linda. "Are you ever going to stop this?" Her voice echoes in the small cabin of the truck making Santana remain still. "You were sent here to stop acting like a spoiled little… Are you forever going to do shit because everyone else is doing it? God dammit Santana," Aunt Linda takes a breath and shakes her head some more. "I thought you were changing or becoming that little girl I once knew. I guess that couldn't have been further from the truth." A small but unamused chuckles pops from Linda's lips and she glances at her niece. "You don't want to be different, heaven forbid. You want to be a drunken, drugged up loser who feels sorry for herself. Well, go ahead because no one else is gonna do it for ya. Maybe having you come here wasn't a good idea… I just… I can't help you if you keep fighting me." She finishes in defeat.

"I'm not fighting you." Santana assures, but it's a lost cause. They both know she has.

"Yes, you are. But," Aunt Linda sighs and pulls the latch on her door. "Come on, re-heated pizza for dinner. After, you're calling Emma Pillsbury to apologize and reschedule for tomorrow."

She watches as her aunt walks up the porch steps and then the way the screen door sways back and forth a few times before it slams to a close. The last few minutes, a complete whirlwind, leaves her with a strange feeling in her chest. Her high, long gone, is no way to blame for the strangeness going on in her body. Aunt Linda could have very well just brought her to the train station, airport or even left her there on Main Street to rot. Sure, maybe she said a few harsh things, but after she said them she told Santana to come inside for dinner. Even what she said, Santana may hate to admit, wasn't even harsh per se. It seemed harsh, but only because it's true.

* * *

><p>"We won't put this in your file." Miss Pillsbury waves Santana's indiscretion away with a flick of her wrist. "Chalk it up to a mistake that won't happen again. Right?" She rests her hands on her overly clean desk and stares back at the young girl across from her.<p>

Santana's eyebrows are practically up to her hairline and her jaw hangs slightly open. It's amazing how coming absolutely clean to Miss Pillsbury over the phone last night has somehow saved her ass. Truth has never been Santana's friend, up until now apparently. Realizing she has yet to give an answer, she shuts her mouth, smiles and nods.

"Great." The social worker cheers with a wide smile. "Here," Miss Pillsbury hands over a pamphlet. "Maybe you need some extracurricular activities." Santana scrunches her nose in distaste at such a suggestion and glances down at the pamphlet that reads 'How to be a Social Butterfly'. "Your aunt told me that you cheered when you were younger. Why'd you stop?" She asks with actual interest. But, Santana just rolls her eyes and shifts in her chair.

"I misplaced my spirit stick." She replies flatly, receiving a curious stare from Emma.

"Well," The older woman clears her throat and fiddles with some papers on her desk. "It's too late to join the cheerleading squad anyway." She shakes her hands and head at that possibility because it clearly won't work. "But, maybe we can find something that will keep you focused and away from the influences you were sent here to avoid."

"Look," Santana interrupts her with a sigh and a wave of her hand as she adjusts in her seat to sit straighter. "I totally appreciate the second life here Miss P." She acknowledges the kindness. Check. "But, you've read my files, so we both know that being 'social' is not really the problem here." Pointing out the obvious. Check. "If I get any more _social_, I'll be sharing a room at Seasons with Lindsey Lohan." Make herself look like a victim of circumstance by comparing herself to a horrible celebrity role model. Check.

"Santana," Miss Pillsbury shakes her head and sits up straighter in her chair. "I think that your definition of the term 'social' is vastly different from where I am trying to lead you here." The ginger haired social worker explains. Santana lowers her head and rolls her eyes, reaching down to her purse to pull out her lips gloss. "By extracurricular activities, I mean after school clubs." She suggests and Santana peeks around her compact to send a raised, questioning eyebrow to the woman sitting across from her. "There are so many viable choices for such a…" She tilts her head smiles as she watches Santana stare at her own reflection and apply her lip gloss. "An opinionated young lady. Like, oh, debate. You could join the debate team." Emma taps the desk enthusiastically catching Santana's attention away from her mirror momentarily. "You obviously have way with words, judging from, well…" She motions towards the file on her desk which holds the many word for word reports from past teachers, police officers and other authority figures from back in Boston. "We'll just set these aside 'cause we wiping the slate clean, right?" She smiles widely but cautiously at the teenage girl in the chair opposite her.

"Thing is, the only kind of clubs I like, are the one I have to sneak in to." Santana explains with a shrug of her shoulders as she shuts her compact and screws the top back on to her lip gloss. "I don't mesh in this southern society. The kids here are way different from the ones back home." She honestly admits, letting her eyes fall to where her purse is so she can put her cosmetics away.

"Maybe you just need an outlet." Miss Pillsbury tries a different approach. It's obvious to her that Santana has some things she keeps locked up and that maybe there's a way for her to express herself. "There's the school paper." She reaches to the right of her desk and grabs her copy of the Knox City High School Muckraker and hands it to Santana. "According to your English teacher _and_ you History teacher, you have flawless grammar and an interesting insight." She taps the pages in front of her where the weekly reports from Santana's teachers sit.

"I'm just book smart." She shifts in her seat, crossing her legs at the knee and her arms over her chest.

"You're not _just_ book smart Santana." Emma assures her and grabs a manila folder, flipping it open to rummage through some papers. "I've read some of your papers." Her eyebrows raise as she seems to find the one she'd been impressed by. "Your paper on the imagery and metaphors in Sylvia Plath's poem 'The Mirror', well," She eyes the paper and then Santana. "It was truly inspiring." She says with certainty. "Being book smart is great, it means you're a thinker. But," She fans out the copies of Santana's tests and essays in awe of the young girl's way with words. "I know you're more than just that. When I was reading these, I saw something that maybe you don't even know is there."

Santana sits there, legs and arms crossed, straight faced. She's never actually heard a slew of compliments from an adult in one sitting and she's not quite sure how to react to this.

"You're a dreamer Santana." Miss Pillsbury breaks the silence, leaning over her hands to make eye contact with the teenage girl across from her. "You have the structure of a thinker, but, somewhere in-between the lines there's a dreamer dancing on the page." She gathers the pages together and sets them back inside the manila folder before lacing her fingers together.

As she waits for Aunt Linda to pick her up outside of the Knox City Healthcare building, Santana glances down at marble notebook in her hand. At Miss Pillsbury's suggestion, each week she has to try and write a small something about a topic given to her by her social worker. She rolled her eyes when the woman gave her the blank book she's now holding, complaining that now she's got homework outside of homework.

But, she can definitely give Miss Pillsbury points for trying. If she can't open up during their sessions, maybe she can open up to herself in a great way she knows how to express herself. She figured she'd give it a try, everyone, including her social worker, has always said she has a way with stringing words together. Plus, she's always been a straight A student in English. Well, when she actually went to class anyway.

* * *

><p>"And I hope to see all of you at the Annual Knox City Late Fall Fair tonight after the game." Principal Figgins voice rings out as the students rush to get to their lockers, preparing themselves for the football game this evening.<p>

Santana moseys over towards her locker, books in hand and rumblings of discontent in her body. It's not a new feeling of being totally over this whole small town vibe, but it is literally bordering on unbearable. Sure, she's got her Friday's covered, what with the strenuous activity of sitting in the bleachers for the Knox City High School football team. But even that is a bogus bullet point on her very short list of things to do and she's growing increasingly bored of her typical weekend tradition.

The only things she knows to keep her idle hands at bay are the exact things that get her into trouble. See incident from a few days ago. Point being, even her nights out with the 'normal' kids from Knox, she is still able to find herself in heaps of trouble. Lesson learned here it, Aunt Linda knows the scent of weed from a mile away so that joyous, teenage road is no longer going to be traveled on. At least not while she's here.

As she opens her locker and shoves her un-needed books to the back, she glances over her shoulder and down the hallway. It's there that she spots the reason behind her even attending this almost second form of religion to the state of Texas. Brittany is at the end of her line of vision, completely unaware of Santana's lingering eye. Her blonde pony sways side to side as she swaps her books, just as Santana had been doing before becoming distracted. Her tight, blue, polyester cheerleading uniform grips at her body in all the right places and her bare legs, well, enough said.

"I think you're drooling." A whisper of a voice comes to her ear and she jerks her head back when the air from the words hits her ear. She turns to the other side of her to find Quinn staring at her with an inquisitive look and a raised eyebrow, a look patented by the blonde. Santana rolls her eyes, feigning ignorance and Quinn's semi obvious observation.

"The game's away right?" She asks, desperate to change the subject as far from her as possible. Quinn leans against the locker beside Santana's and nods her head as she tugs on her cheerleading duffle bag.

"I _knew_ there was another reason you were coming to _all_ of the football games." Quinn says suggestively and smirks at the way Santana slightly fumbles with her books before quickly shutting her locker with a louder than needed bang.

"The _only_ reason is there's nothing to do in this cow town." Santana defends, spinning on her heels to face her friend, leaving her back to the girl she had previously been eyeing from a far. Quinn looks down and bites her bottom lip before she chuckles and shakes her head. She knows that even if she caught Santana red handed, literally, the girl would probably deny anything till she was blue in the face. "Besides," She flips her hair, giving a stoner looking boy a stare down as he passes them before turning her attention back to Quinn. "I wasn't drooling over anyone."

"Right." Quinn gives up and pushes herself away from the lockers, leading them to walk down the hall. "You don't do 'feelings' or whatever." Santana nods firmly as she follows her friend towards the staircase. "So," She turns so she is walking backwards until her back hits the door leading to the stairs. "Please tell me you're coming to the Fair." She says this with wide, pleading eyes. "My mom is literally planning on making me stay at the pie tent the entire time. She's convinced that telling her I want to hang out with friends is just a play to ditch her." She explains with slight annoyance and Santana chuckles as they descend the stairs, making their way to the first floor of their school. "Which, please, we all know that is one hundred percent true. It's my senior year and I do not want to spend my last Fall Fair of freedom trapped under a picnic tent selling blueberry pie."

"Like I said, Aunt Linda's probably already signed me up for something even worse than that." Santana reminds her, shaking her head at the very thought of having to do any kind of community service in a community that pretty much blows. "Especially after the shit I pulled on Wednesday." She adds as an afterthought, but says it low enough that Quinn doesn't ask her to repeat herself. When she glances over her finds Quinn looking down at the ground once they hit the main floor, her lips twisted in thought. "But, I'm banking on being punished for missing my meeting," She catches herself before exploiting her Wednesday meetings with the town's social worker, wanting to avoid questions as to why. "So she'll probably drag me there herself to be more 'social'. At least we'll both be miserable." She offers, wondering if what she's just said has busted Quinn's bubble of hope.

"You don't know do you?" Quinn asks softly once they reach the parking lot in front of the school. Santana's eyebrows furrow as she follows Quinn over to the flag pole where they usually wait for Brittany. Once there, the blonde slowly turns to face her friend and gives her a solemn look. "Your aunt hasn't been to the fair in…" Her eyes widen a bit and she takes in a breath as she thinks about the last time she'd seen Linda Lopez at the Annual Knox City Late Fall Fair. "She doesn't go to them." She settles for, finally looking back up at Santana who is still staring at her in confusion.

"Why? Doesn't everyone in this town do _everything_ together?" She questions, unsure as to why Aunt Linda out of anyone in Knox would pass up a night of carnival type fun. But, before she can delve further into the 'why' of it all, Brittany comes bounding towards them with an excited, pre-game smile on her face.

"You ready for tonight's game?" Brittany asks as she bumps her shoulder to Quinn's.

"Two more and then playoffs." Quinn sing songs pushing her shoulder right back into Brittany, who grins back at Santana.

"You're comin' right?" She inquires, a bit more hopeful than she had expected to sound. Quinn sends Santana an 'I knew it' smirk and watches as the shorter girl nods her head.

"I gotta go and stretch my spirit fingers before the big game." Quinn announces, flickering her fingers and sends a wink to the girls before she turns towards the parking lot.

"Ready?" Brittany asks once it's only the two of them standing by the flag pole.

"Uh," Santana glances around the parking lot that is thinning out quickly and looks over at Brittany. "Yeah." When they get inside the head cheerleader's pick-up truck, she sets her books on her lap and looks to her left at Brittany. She watches her turn the key to start the ignition and smiles back at her when she reaches her arm around the back of Santana's seat as she backs the truck up.

"What?" Brittany giggles out when she pulls her arm back from behind Santana to put the car in drive, noticing her friend's eyes still on her.

"Nothing." She shakes her head and moves her focus to the windshield.

"You sure? You look like you want to say something." Brittany points out, making sure to look both ways before turning out of the high school's parking lot. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Santana nod, letting her know she is certain that there is nothing on her mind. She shrugs, letting her friend get away with holding in whatever it is she is thinking about.

Santana wants to ask Brittany about what Quinn was saying, that Aunt Linda doesn't go to the fair anymore. She remembers the few times she and her family were able to make it down to Knox City to join in the town's festivities. But, as they are turning off of Main, she realizes. The last time she'd attended the Annual Knox City Late Fall Fair, well, circumstances were quite different.

Of course she would assume that the particular gathering might bring up some unwanted and very sad memories for her aunt, but she had just figured that after all these years, she would have somewhat moved on. However, it's seems as though that is not the case. While Brittany fumbles with the radio dial, Santana pictures the rest of town having a ball at the fair while Aunt Linda sits at home, clutching a picture or some sort of memorabilia of her uncle. The thought made her shiver and desperately reminded her of one of those ridiculously heartbreaking Nicholas Sparks books.

When she finally snaps out of it, Brittany is pulling into her perfectly paved driveway. It makes Santana's mind wander once again to her uncle, and that maybe Aunt Linda's driveway was still made up of dirt and rocks because he never got the chance to pave it himself. It only makes her think of all of the other things that they never got to do. But, it also brings her mind to her own parents and the things _they_ never got to do. Like, celebrate their twentieth wedding anniversary or even more family vacations to Aunt Linda's.

These ideas just annoy her because, it's clear to her that nothing good can ever last even if it is stolen from you.

"I have to ride with the team." Brittany breaks the radio filled silence that had fallen between them since they had left the school's parking lot.

"Oh," Santana brings herself back to reality and grabs her things before placing her hand on the latch to the door. "Yeah, I'll take Aunt Lee's truck." She knows that Aunt Linda won't have a problem with her using the truck to go to a football game. Aunt Linda would let her use the truck any time of day if it meant she was staying out of trouble.

"Cool." Brittany just smiles. She's grateful that the distance and transportation details are not going to deter Santana from coming to the game. "But, if you want, we'll meet back here after? Go to the fair together?" Santana nods as she hops out of the truck and heads towards her Aunt's house.

Brittany watches on as Santana disappears beyond the bushes that separate their houses, wondering what it is that is distracting her friend. Sure, Santana doesn't really say much as it is, but there is clearly something on her mind and it kind of made her worry. She seemed more in her head than usual. But, she figured it best not to push for an answer just yet, sure that if Santana needed to vent, she'd be the one she would turn to.

"Hey Aunt Lee." Santana greets when she walks through the door. She tosses her books on the coffee table in the living room when she hears her aunt shout a 'hello' from the kitchen and then follows the voice. "So, can I borrow the truck?" She asks, leaning against the wall and watches as Linda stirs a pitcher of iced tea with a big wooden spoon. Her aunt looks up to give her a skeptical glance and she offers the older woman a pout for good measure. "Britt's game is away." She explains easily and enters the kitchen, grabbing an apple from the bowl of fruit on the counter. Aunt Linda raises an eyebrow at the comment of it being 'Britt's game', but turns her focus back to her iced tea and nods. "Awesome." Santana cheers with a bite of apple in her mouth and hops up on the counter top.

"But, you better come back here right after." Linda explains. Santana stops munching on her after school snack and stares blankly at her aunt.

"Why?" She asks with a tinge of irritation. After a few moments without an answer from Aunt Linda, she crosses her legs at the knee and looks to her apple for the next best bite. "There's that probably super dull fair tonight. Everyone's going and Quinn practically begged for my presence and I do not like to disappoint." Again, Aunt Linda doesn't respond. Santana shrugs her shoulders and flips her apple around to get a fresh bite. "I mean, it's most likely a ploy for her to have some company while flinging pies at the Knox masses, but…"

"After Wednesday," Aunt Linda interrupts, sets the spoon in the sink and grabs the pitcher to bring to the refrigerator. "Did you really think you were gonna get away without facing any consequences?" She shakes her head as she sets the pitcher on the top shelf and turns back to the counter to wipe it clean.

"So you wait till there's finally something _fascinating_ happening in this place to start dishing out discipline?" Santana inquires in disbelief, completely ignoring her afternoon treat and keeps her eyes on Aunt Linda.

But, she doesn't say a word, simply continues to walk around the kitchen running her dish rag over every surface. Silence in a situation like this does not bode well with Santana, who hops off the counter and crosses her arms over her chest. She's sure this has something to do with the 'why' of her Aunt not being a fixture at the yearly late fall fair. Suddenly her intrigue as to the reasons behind Aunt Linda no longer attending this function vanish and she does the only thing she knows that lets her get her way. She cuts. Deep.

"You aren't punishing me because of Wednesday." Santana accuses with a stern, but calm and steady voice. "You just want some company while you sit here," She uncrosses an arm to wave it in the air to emphasize the house they are in before crossing it again. "_Sad_ and _alone_." Aunt Linda makes the mistake of stammering by the sink and Santana quirks an eyebrow in victory. She doesn't want to hurt her aunt really; in fact, it's not even Aunt Linda she's thinking of right now. "Well, I have my own miserable life thank you very much."

Memories of the times her mother even tried to punish her or keep her from going out come rushing through her mind. All she can picture now is the way she'd come home to find an empty bottle of vodka on the coffee table or 'hidden' under the tomato jars in the recycling bin. Or the other nights she remembers, when she was younger, finding her mother asleep on the recliner with home movies playing across the screen. It was so depressing and embarrassing to her that her mother could not get over the past and the shortcomings of Santana's father and their relationship.

"The _least_ you could do while I'm trapped in this hell hole," Linda is rendered motionless, purely speechless at the volume and anger coming out of such a small person, but keeps her back to Santana as the young girl continues her tantrum/tirade. "Is give me the freedom to not stand here and watch you wallow away in self pity because you're lonely." Santana bites her tongue as soon as the last word leaves her lips and at the sight of her Aunt gripping the edge of the sink.

It's quiet in the kitchen for a few, but painstakingly, long seconds. Santana's mouth hangs open, her jaw trembles with words her brain can't think up to say. Her arms loosen from her chest, but she doesn't drop them to her sides. She watches, with wide eyes, as Aunt Linda straightens herself up and clears her throat. Her back remains to her niece and she begins the motions of cleaning the counters with the rag that is still in her hand.

"The keys are by the door." Linda tells her. Santana is startled because the woman before her still has that Lopez strength in her voice.

"Aunt Lee, I'm…" Santana stutters, 'sorry' not necessarily being a word that easily falls from her lips, but one she feels the need to say repeatedly right now.

"Santana," Aunt Linda says, and looks over her shoulder at the area her niece is standing by but not at her. "Bring your phone." She reminds her and then goes back to wiping down the counter that really does not need any more cleaning.

Santana stands still for a few more moments, unable to speak or move really. It takes her physically willing her body to turn around, go to her room, grab her jacket and phone and then keys before leaving the house. Like with all away games, she drives to her high school to follow the busses and the trucks of eager parents and fans to the game.

Normally, while she rides behind the controlled chaos that is Knox City football fans, she mutters to herself about how lame they all are and that Puck would totally make fun of her for becoming one of these 'school spirit' kind of girls. But, today is different. The entire drive to Newcastle, all Santana can think of is what had just happened between her and Aunt Linda. It was unplanned to say the least. The whole time she's been here, she has been desperately trying to avoid any kind of confrontation with her aunt. But, as always, when faced with authority she went for the low blow.

It's almost a thirty minute drive out to Newcastle, but to Santana, she would have appreciated some more time. Sometimes driving around helps her clear her thoughts and it's kind of been a hard something to do ever since she's been here. Sure, Aunt Linda lets her borrow the truck a lot, but, she just can't find the same flow with the roads here like the ones she knows so well back home.

The crowd at Newcastle is just as big and loud as the Knox City fans at their own home games. It seems that everyone here in Texas has an affinity for the all American sport, safe for her of course. Before she gets out of Aunt Linda's truck, she scans the foreign little town's people, football team and cheerleaders. She can't help but roll her eyes in thought. The thought being that _her_ high school has way hotter cheerleaders than they cousin lovers. This only makes her roll her eyes again, but at herself, for even referring to Knox as _hers_.

She turns her head when she hears louder cheers and sees that about twenty feet from her parking spot is where the Knox City High School busses are letting out the squad and team. She looks on as bubbly cheerleaders in blue and white uniforms bounce off of the bus, with their little blue and white duffle bags over their shoulders and their high, most likely regulation ponytails swinging behind them. There's this certain pep in the step of a Texas cheerleader that she finds slightly endearing. Every Friday night, they go out on the field to cheer on the players to 'fight, score, win' while also informing the other team that their school is 'boom, dynamite'. Win or lose, the girls are out there trying to motivate their boys and keep the spirits of the people in the stands up.

It really makes perfect sense to her why Brittany of all people would be a Texas cheerleader. There's this optimism a cheerleader needs to possess or their cheers are somewhat, not believable. That innocence Santana catches in Brittany's eyes every Friday night could probably power the whole squad with pride and optimism.

As she gets out the truck, her mind switches to the 'why' someone like Quinn would be a cheerleader. After all the crappy things she's been through, it almost seems like a sad joke that the one pregnant teenager would throw on a most likely itchy polyester uniform and be cheerful. Maybe it was God's form of punishment, to bestow endless cheer for the cheerless cheerleader. As though being a test Quinn needs to pass in order to be accepted through the pearly gates at the end of her life.

Walking through the throngs of overexcited, high school football fans, Santana continues on her own little dissection of the possible 'redemption' Quinn is looking for through cheering. She's sure having a baby and then losing it at fifteen is pretty rough. Well, she didn't _lose_ it really. She gave the baby up for adoption, but Santana figures it's as close to death without the actual dying. A loss like that has got to be unfathomable. It's kind of like… and that's when it hits her.

Standing in the small walk way that leads the opposing teams fans to the bleachers, she steps to the side to avoid being in the middle of a gang of loud, pushy people. She leans up against the tiny fence just by the steps leading up to the small staircase and the feeling of dread spills over her, sending a cold chill down her spine. The half conversation she had with Quinn earlier today, with the blonde's subtle 'you don't know' about why Aunt Linda doesn't go to the late fall fair echoes in her mind.

She's been so wrapped up in getting through her time here in Knox that she was blinded to anything and anyone other than herself. This strange feeling in her gut felt heavy and her chest tightened. It's no wonder why Aunt Linda hasn't been to the fair in the last few years. The last time Santana even remembers going to the Annual Knox City Late Fall Fair was when her Uncle Roger was home on leave from the Marines. It was also the last time she'd seen him before he died a few months later. It was the last time Aunt Linda had seen or been with him as well.

Even though it's been years, it's apparent that the pain is still there for her aunt. Time is a funny thing in that it sometimes does not heal all wounds. If Santana wasn't a perfect example of that, what with her family's dysfunction and short comings, Aunt Linda was the very picture of that.

With a wave of guilt, something Santana has seldom felt before in her young life, she glances out to the field where the players on both teams are already stretching and practicing. She can see from her spot as the Knox City cheerleaders gather in a tight circle, smiles and laughter drowned out by the even louder crowd in the stadium. Suddenly, this Friday night ritual of sitting there and feigning interest in a game she does not understand in the slightest, does not seem like a great way to forget about her problems.

Without another thought of a football game or even cheerleaders in short skirts doing split in the air, Santana spins around and heads back out towards the parking lot. Within seconds she's pulling back out to the highway and driving back towards Knox City. The drive this time feels shorter. Not paying much attention to the flowing traffic, her mind wanders to and from all of the awful things she'd said to Aunt Linda over an hour ago.

When she had said them, she knew she wasn't meaning to speak that way to Aunt Linda. Unfortunately, Linda had been in the line of fire during a short by highly volatile temper tantrum completely directed at Santana's parents. Her aunt had, unfortunately, been in the crossfire and bearer of harsh words. But, regardless of how wrong she knows she's been, she has absolutely no clue as how to go about rectifying her awful behavior.

Santana winds up driving all the way back to Knox City High School instead of back to Aunt Linda's. She can't face the woman who has been kind enough to take her in this year, without at least thinking of some way to make it better. Back home, if she'd accidentally 'hurt' someone's feelings, she would just make a sarcastic remark and completely dance around the word 'sorry', therefore apologizing without actually saying the words. She's just certain that it won't work that way with her aunt.

* * *

><p>The bus pulls up to Knox City High School a little after nine at night. The boys are cheering louder than ever, because they are one game away from an undefeated season and also two games away from the playoffs. Their voices fade off into the distance as they hop in their trucks and head off for a most likely celebratory evening. The cheerleaders arrive a few moments later, some making it back in time to get in their boyfriend's trucks or to drive off with one another.<p>

Quinn and Brittany are happily walking back to the parking lot a few feet away from where the school bus had dropped the squad off. They talk animatedly about how amazing it is going to be to have the playoffs going on, especially for their senior year. The football team usually makes it to the playoffs, but it's just icing on the cake when it happens for a senior.

The pair walks halfway to the parking lot, discussing the fair and how they'll meet up at some point if Quinn can manage to escape the clutches of the pie tent. As the trucks and cars that once filled the front of the school drive off the town's hotspot, the fair, only a few vehicles are left behind.

"Hey." Quinn says softly, interrupting their pointless conversation. Brittany glances over her shoulder when Quinn nods her head to the spot behind her. About thirty feet away, where Brittany's powder blue pick-up is parked, sits Santana on the hood. "I, uh," Quinn shifts her feet from side to side and looks over to where her own truck is parked, on the opposite side of the lot. "I'll see you later?"

"Oh, yeah." Brittany breathes out with a smile, turning back to Quinn just as she is heading towards her truck. After she watches Quinn's truck pull away, she turns around to walk to her own ride. The one with the sad looking girl sitting on the hood, clearly waiting for her. "Hey." She greets softly, not wanting to startle Santana too much.

Santana glances over her shoulder and sends her friend a half hearted smile, nodding at the greeting. Brittany slows her walk as she comes closer to the truck and places her duffle bag into the back before moving to the front where Santana is still sitting.

"You weren't at the game." Brittany comments. She walks to the front of the truck and hoists herself up until she is sitting in the spot next to Santana. When she doesn't respond, Brittany takes in a breath and glances out to the road in front of them where Santana's stare is. "Wanna talk about it?" The girl beside her shakes her head. It was to be expected, but it doesn't make it any less frustrating. The quiet takes over for a little while longer, until Santana takes in a deep breath as well and when she lets it out, it's actually followed with a tiny admission.

"I was such a shit to my aunt today." Santana tells her. Brittany tries not to smirk or grin, but it's kind of hard when her friend phrases her behavior in such a way.

"Did you apologize?" She asks after a few short seconds of silence.

"I don't _do_ apologies." She hears Brittany let out a slightly annoyed but amused laugh.

"Do you actually 'do' anything?" Brittany asks curiously and turns her head towards Santana, who stares back at her in confusion. "Ever since you got here all you tell me is what you don't 'do'." She says and leans farther back on her hands. "_'I don't 'do' love'_." Brittany imitates Santana's accent and attitude. "_'I don't do feelings'_." She adds, finally smiling when hears a gentle chuckle come from the girl beside her. "I know you say '_we're not little kids anymore'_, but, we're also _not _strangers." Brittany enforces. "We know each other. We're still the same people. I mean, yea, we changed a bit, just our bodies really. So what, we have boobs and got taller… well, I got taller. And like, instead of 'Zoey 101' posters on our walls I have Beyonce and the 'Charlie St. Cloud' movie poster. And, I don't know, you've got strippers or naked girls." She chuckles with a shake of her head after receiving an arched eyebrow from Santana. "I don't really know." She watches as Santana's mouth goes from smile to serious a few times and how her head subtly shakes from side to side as she breathes out a small laugh.

"No naked girls." Santana informs her with amusement.

"Well, see." Brittany waves her hands in the air before letting them fall to her thighs. "I don't know things like that because you don't tell me. _Talk_ to me." She begs, but in the least pathetic kind of way that Santana's ever heard. It's kind of cute.

"About what?" She questions with uncertainty. She's never actually had a friend, besides Brittany when they were kids, who she had any sort of meaningful conversation with. Puck never actually listened to her piss and moan about her personal problems. The most they ever complained about together or shared was about getting it on with some chick or even sometimes each other.

"Like," Brittany starts slowly, giving herself a few seconds to think of what she wants to say. "What is it about home you miss so much? What are your friends like there? Why are you here and not there?" She tilts her head to the side, watching as her 'questions' go through Santana's mind. With a tiny giggle she brushes her knee against Santana's to catch her full attention. "Is your favorite food _still_ mac and cheese?" She asks this as though it is the most important question of them all and it garners a chuckle from the girl beside her. "Anything. Everything. I knew you then and I want to know you now." Santana nods, looks over at Brittany and smiles, her eyes shining under the moonlight. The blonde can sense that her interest is most definitely appreciated.

The quiet of the night covers them up and they sit on the hood of the pick-up enjoying the clear night sky above them. Brittany leans back, her hands coming to rest on the top of the cool metal of the hood of her truck. She wonders if expressing he interest in all things Santana will evoke the sharing of feelings from the tight lipped little girl beside her. But, after a few more minutes with only the sound of breathing and cars from far away, she clears her throat and shifts her feet on the bumper of her truck.

"So, when I'm in a bad mood…" She starts, but pauses when Santana laughs out in a breath.

"_You_ in a bad mood? Yeah right." Santana chuckles and gets one of those sweet smiles topped with a shoulder shrug from Brittany.

"When _I'm_ in a bad mood and _yes_ it's been known to happen." She flashes a toothy grin at her friend and playfully bites on the tip of her tongue as she shifts on her hands that rest on the hood of the truck. "I just pop my headphones in and let music fix me." Santana stares with an intrigued and amused smirk, watching the way Brittany lets her head fly back to smile at the sky.

"You really think music can 'save' someone, don't you?" She asks with extreme curiosity and desire to know the blonde's secrets. Brittany lightly laughs, shrugs again and lowers her head to glance down at Santana's hand resting against the worn in metal inches from her.

"Music makes all the difference." Brittany tells her, looking up to find Santana's eyes staring back at her. She smiles sweetly and tilts her head in thought. "Without it, there's no," She twists her lips for a moment, recalling a memory. "I once read that a song can trigger a memory just as easily as a smell can. Sense memory is a pretty insane thing." She nods and her eyes widen, remembering how surprised she was at this first time around. "The fact that we can recall something from so long ago at the drop of a beat or ting of a symbol," Her eyes flicker from Santana and to the night's sky a few times. "It's pretty inspiring. I guess that's why I love to dance. Sure, I don't always need actual music coming out of the speakers," Santana lets out a tiny laugh and nods, completely agreeing with Brittany on that one. "But, it doesn't mean the music isn't there. There's _always_ music. It's," She sits up to pull her hands from behind her and off of the hood of the car and motions to herself. "_Inside_ of me. It lets me do what I love to do. It helps me. It's what makes me believe in… well in everything. I'm not naive like people think." Brittany firmly states, setting her hands on her lap and looks at Santana. "Like that Russian guy said, 'you may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one'." Santana refrains from correcting her, because it's in this absurd moment of clarity for Brittany, she brings the same clarity to Santana. "Difference between me and everyone else is that I have the balls to dream out loud and dance to the music."

Brittany claps her hands together, noting her moment of wise wisdom is finished and she sucks on her lower lip as her words drift off into the night time air. It leaves Santana in awe at the way in which she pieces words together to describe a feeling, in such a simple way that leaves Santana nearly speechless. Perhaps Brittany is not what many would call book smart, but to Santana, it didn't mean that the blonde isn't her own kind of smart. Brittany makes words, the ones about feelings, sound like a song that she dances to everyday. Santana can't help but wonder if she'd ever learn the dance.

"So much for getting _you_ to talk." Brittany breaks their short silence and hops off the hood of her truck. "I hope I at least helped a little bit." She shoves her hands behind her back, almost forgetting that she's still wearing her cheerleading uniform that has no back pockets.

"Uh," Santana slowly slides off the truck as well, making sure her skirt doesn't ride up in the process. "I'm just kind of hoping your sweetness has rubbed off on me and that Aunt Linda can't find it in her heart to not forgive me." Santana shakes her head and shakes her hands in the air, obviously not as good with words right now as Brittany.

"So you think I'm sweet huh?" Brittany counters with an arched eyebrow. The quickness of the response catches Santana off guard, but she recovers.

"As pie." She winks which garners a light giggle out of Brittany.

"Cheese." Brittany nudges her gently. They stand there quietly for a few moments, both uncertain of where this conversation leaves the night. "So," Brittany speaks up once more. "I gather you got an apology to make." She nods subtly, but Santana soon mimics the motion.

"I better." She points over her shoulder to where her truck is parked only a few spots away. They wave to one another, and Santana turns around when she sees Brittany walk around to the driver's side of her truck. Her boots make crunching noises over the gravel of the parking lot, but the noise is disturbed by the sound of Brittany's door squeaking open.

"Santana," Brittany calls out, instantly catching Santana's attention. "It's a shame you gotta miss the fair tonight." She comments, leaning her arms on the roof of her truck as she stands on the foot step of her vehicle. "At midnight, the guy who runs the Ferris wheel stops it at the top for me every year." She waves her hand in front of her face as though painting a picture in the air. "It's like you're flying."

When Santana finally gets home, the house seems quiet. But just as she places the keys down on the table by the door, she hears a familiar sound from a time so long ago. Slowly, she walks towards the noise which leads her to the living room. Aunt Linda is sitting on the couch, the only light is that of the television and the table lamp in the far corner of the room. On screen, she sees her younger self smiling and dancing away.

She half smirks to herself because she remembers these videos. There were probably dozens of these around the house of her, Uncle Roger and Brittany from all those summers they'd spent together. Uncle Roger was playing guitar while the younger Santana made up her own words to songs she didn't know. It'd been so long since she'd watched the DVD, it almost seemed like a dream that she had once been so tiny and full of hope.

"I know the words now." Santana speaks up, startling Aunt Linda, who grabs the remote and lowers the sound. She moves from her spot against the wall and goes to stand beside the couch.

"I always liked your versions better." Linda chuckles, sending a longing glance to the television as an image of Uncle Roger comes on screen.

"I didn't mean what I said to you earlier." The younger Lopez admits with her head hung and her eyes downcast. "You've been trying to help me. Letting me come here instead of going to juvie, 'cause that's probably what would have wound up happening and…" She looks to her aunt and her shoulders slump. "I get that, you're trying to help me and no matter how hard I make it for the both of us…" Her voice trails off, realizing she is just not very good with words except when they aim to cut. "I guess it makes sense that I'm here though. I know you still miss Uncle Rog." Aunt Linda looks down at her lap and nods with a sad smile on her lips. "Probably always will. I know I will." She explains easily enough. "Truth is, we are both broken people. Maybe if we lean on each other, we can help one another be whole again. But, you can't stay trapped in the past. You have to live in the now. It's a beautiful world out there… it just needs you to class the joint up a bit." She offers Aunt Linda her best bright smile which makes the older woman tilt her head and grin.

Aunt Linda looks at her niece for a moment. The young girl she remembers might not physically still be here, but deep inside, beyond that tough exterior and behind those tortured brown eyes she can see her. Through her straight face and tight lips, she closes her photo album and waves Santana over, patting the spot on the couch just beside her. Santana does as requested, and nervously takes the seat offered to her by Aunt Linda.

"Why do you do that?" Aunt Linda asks in a soft voice. Santana's brow furrows and she tilts her head when she looks at her aunt. "Pretend like you don't care, about anything?" Linda shrugs her shoulders as though to emphasize her point, even adding an eye roll. "You act as if the world owes you things, like you don't have to work for them like everyone else in the world." Santana looks away for a moment. Her eyes flicker to the coffee table not only avoiding Aunt Linda's determined stare but, also to avoid some truth. "People have crappy things happen to them all the time, Santana. I'm proof of _that_." She points to herself with sad humor in her voice. "It sucks, but, it's life. But, the bad things don't make life any less worth living. Sometimes, it's the bad things that happen in our lives that make us truly appreciate the things we _do_ have." She smiles at her niece and reaches over to affectionately squeeze her knee. "Come here." She places her arm around Santana's shoulder's and pulls her against her chest, patiently waiting for tiny arms to wrap around her in return.

"I'm..." Santana mumbles the starts of an actual apology, but falls short and just she allows herself to fall comfortably into her aunt's embrace. She's curious when she hears and feels a rumble of chuckles roll from Linda.

"Us Lopez folk," Aunt Linda pulls back to look her niece in the eye so the girl can see that she's smiling. "We're not very good at sharing our feelings. It's hard for me to be mad at you for that." She presses a quick kiss to Santana's temple before letting her free of the hug. "But when we do," She lets out another laugh. "_Look out_." Linda shakes her head and looks to her right where she places her hand on the photo album she'd been looking at before Santana came in with a bucket of apologies. "I do miss your uncle." She comments in a far off voice and Santana just watches at the way her aunt lightly runs her fingers over the worn, leather cover. "I wasn't punishing you because of that." She says and looks over at Santana who keeps her focus on her hands in her own lap. Linda grins, taps her photo album and pushes herself up from the couch, patting Santana's shoulder as she prepares to leave the room.

"Someone told me that the Ferris wheel is the place to be." Santana suggests with a tiny, hopeful smile. "Said it's like you're flying." She squeezes her aunt's hand and motions with her head towards the front door. "What do you say, wanna fly?"

"Santana, honey," Aunt Linda reaches over and taps the hand that is covering her own. "I had ten years of flying with your uncle." She smiles wistfully at the memories. "I think my flying days are over." She winks, gives Santana's hand another tap and then pushes herself up from the couch. "Ya know," Linda interrupts herself and turns back to face Santana who is still sitting in the same spot. "If you leave now, you might be able to catch the last flight."

And with that, Aunt Linda grabs her album and leaves the living room and Santana. When she hears her aunt's bedroom door open and close Santana glances over at the time on the cable box below the television set. It's a little passed twenty after eleven and she knows that McKinley Field, where the fair is, is about fifteen minutes away off the south service road.

She gnaws on her bottom lip, grabs her cell phone and then the keys before breaking out into a light jog to the truck. In the blink of an eye, she passes the Pierce home, to find the driveway empty of all vehicles which only spurs her on to press more firmly on the gas. She shakes her head at herself, wondering why she's even racing to get to McKinley Field in the first place. Everyone is probably already on their way home, Quinn's most likely closing up shop at her mother's pie tent and it's not like Brittany insinuated that she wanted to go on the Ferris wheel with her.

So when she finally reaches the open field that the town holds all of their yearly fairs, she's proven right at her first thought. The make-shift parking lot is probably half as full as it had been earlier in the evening. There are close spots to the front, which is better for her, but only makes her feel as though she's too late. She walks briskly up to the ticket teller, which is really just a sad looking box that looks like a cheaply made toll booth stopped at by people when passing through cities.

With a two tickets in her hand, ten dollars worth, she makes her way through the thinning crowd of the late fall fair. Some tents are still up. Mostly, she reasons, for people to just gossip with one another about everyone else. As soon as she parked the truck, she could spot the Ferris wheel. But, as she walks through the rest of the field, she finds that it is a lot further than it looked, being set up just before the end of the entire fair itself.

There are some people waiting in line for the roller coaster, others waiting in line at the Fabray pie tent and the rest of the masses are enjoying their treats while walking hand in hand and arm in arm. To her left she sees the various games that fairs have. The ones where people throw balls at wooden milk bottles, shoot water guns towards a clown's mouth and the one with the ping pong ball to win a fish. At the end of the long throng of games, she looks forward to see that she has finally reached the Ferris wheel.

Just a few feet away, where the rides operator leans up against a metal hand rail, she spots a blonde headed girl. It's Brittany, and she's clearly having a conversation with the Ferris wheel guy, as she is moving her hands around as the man obviously listens. When Santana gets a little bit closer, the young man's eyes flicker in her direction, causing Brittany to look over her shoulder and she smiles.

"You made it." Brittany says in a soft whisper of excitement. The cheerleader turns fully around, letting Santana see that she is not donning her usual cheer uniform.

"You ladies ready?" The man says, a tight lipped smile tugs over his teeth and he steps back to motion towards the bench ready for new passengers. Santana's brow furrows and she gives Brittany an inquisitive look.

"How'd you know I'd come?" She asks with surprise. Brittany shrugs her shoulders and glances down at the round where her shoes are brushing over the pebbles in the dirt.

"I didn't." Brittany admits before looking back up at Santana. "But, I hoped you would and you did. So…" She peers over her shoulder towards the awaiting bench, and then her eyes fall back to Santana and she wriggles her eyebrows.

Santana hands over her two tickets to the operator and steps in, taking a seat as Brittany asks the man to stop at the tippy top. She grins because the blonde sounds like that little girl she used to play with all those summers ago.

Just as promised, the Ferris wheel bench the two of them are sitting in stops at the very top, giving them a beautiful view of the sky. They can see beyond the open fields, farms and houses and just past Main Street. Santana's two hands grip the steel bar that is supposed to be there for safety, but honestly she feels anything but. It's the warm hand that covers her own that eases her anxiety and lets her breathe.

"Remember in the summer," Brittany interrupts the light wind that has been the background noise floating between them, and raises her other hand to point out ahead of them. "They used to shoot fireworks at the summer fair?" She asks, letting her hand drop back to the bar and looks over at Santana who is staring off into the sky.

"Mhmm." Santana nods as she hums out the response.

"Did," Brittany gets that she's the one who's going to have to be making conversation, but it's something she's grown accustomed to with Santana. "Everything with your aunt work out?" She asks.

Santana looks down at her hands that are gripping at the steel bar, first at her right one and then the left, the one with Brittany's hand covering her own. Her mouth turns up slightly at the corners and she blinks some of the dryness the air from up this high is causing before turning to the girl beside her. She nods and mouths 'yeah', which kind of comes out all scratchy and gets lost in the breeze.

"Thank you." She finally says after clearing her throat. Brittany just smiles and nods, acknowledging her and then they both turn their heads back to the open sky.

* * *

><p>Brittany was all ready for cheerleading, but was just as surprised as the rest of her squad when she learned that her coach had cancelled their Wednesday afternoon practice. It's not often they get off from cheer practice, but it's something they can learn to appreciate. Cheerleading at Knox City High School, especially under the reign of a coach like theirs, is a pretty hard life. Their squad literally only has a month and a half off during the whole year, so when they get a day off, it's a nice breather.<p>

But with no plans directly after school, Brittany finds herself a little lost. It's easy for her to go through a routine, because every day is always the same. School, practice. School, game. It's a lot easier to get by as a Texas cheerleader when there is some structure. As she is about to find Santana to see if she wants to get together now that she is free, her cell phone goes off. It's a text message from her mother asking her to drop by her office after school. She's sure it's about something completely unimportant in her own life, but something 'super' important in the Mayor's. Sending a quick response to her mom, she heads out to her truck rather unenthusiastically.

Quinn couldn't have been more relieved to finally get a day to herself. The last time she had ever had moments to herself after school was when she got pregnant sophomore year. As much as she appreciated the alone time, it was also a little too alone. But after two years of working her ass off to be in the top three of the squad, she quite likes the idea of having a day to do her own thing. So with that in mind, she gathers her little gang of misfits and they head out to Holly's Daze for some relaxation and burgers.

Santana is more than a little bummed when she has to decline the trip to Holly's straight from school, because she has her weekly meeting with Miss Pillsbury. But, while leaving Quinn in the dark as to what the important 'thing' she needs to actually is, she assures them that she will meet up afterwards.

It takes Brittany a good ten minutes or so to reach the parking lot of Knox City Town Hall. She parks her truck beside the nicer cars of the office building employees, including her mothers, a 2011 Mustang. It was a gift from her father last Christmas and it was a complete joke to Brittany. Her mother hated muscle cars and anything that went too fast, yet here was her fire engine red Mustang convertible. Brittany is sure she just enjoyed it because it was flashy and expensive.

As she walks around the steps of the front of the building to head up to the glass doors, she happens to take a glance across the street. With a double take, she tilts her head to the side when she notices Santana walking up Charles, where she had just come from, and go through the doors of the Knox City Healthcare building. She's curious, to say the least. It makes her wonder about all those other Wednesday's when Santana said she had 'things' to keep her busy. Brittany kind of realizes that other days during the week, her friend can usually be found waiting for her in the bleachers for cheer practice to let out.

When Santana finally reaches the outside world beyond the doors of the Knox City Healthcare building, she is surprised to find a familiar powder blue truck parked right there by the curb. But, she's even more surprised when she finds the truck's owner leaning comfortably against the passenger side door looking back at her.

She tucks her thumb under the bag on her shoulder and shifts it to a better position. Her eyes flicker to the people walking around the town, completely unaware of the strange air suddenly between Santana and Brittany. Even Brittany is unaware. They both make moves towards one another, chuckling awkwardly as they meet halfway on the sidewalk.

"Are you sick?" Brittany asks curiously, motioning to the building just behind Santana that is clearly the one where the doctor's office is.

"Oh," Santana glances behind her to see the big letters that spell out 'healthcare' on the front of the building and shakes her head when she turns back to Brittany. "No, I just had to get something for my aunt."

"Oh." Brittany nods and looks over her shoulder to her mom's office building briefly. "Is your aunt sick?" She asks, suddenly concerned that her neighbor might be ill.

"No." Santana instantly assures her. "Aunt Lee's fine." They both shift their weight from foot to foot and their eyes travel from one another to down the street and then back.

"You know," Brittany starts, slowly and softly, and catches Santana's attention. "You don't have to lie. If you don't want to tell me something, just say so." She offers with a half smile half frown and Santana can't fight the heat that comes to her face as she has never actually been called out on a lie. It's kind of surprising that Brittany can sense even a little white lie from her. It's kind of intimidating.

"Okay, well, then I don't want to talk about it." She spits out defensively, but does her best at making it sound as calm as possible. Still, it catches Brittany a tad off guard and now she's looking sort of like a puppy that's been kicked.

"Is this," Brittany shrugs and her fingers tug at the bottom of her cheer top, using her head to nod at the healthcare building. "Where you go every Wednesday?" Her feet step on one another as she notices the way Santana shifts her bag. "I mean…"

"I said I don't want to talk about it." Santana snaps, letting her eyes come up to meet Brittany's wide with surprise ones.

"I was just wondering." She admits in a small voice, tearing her eyes from those dark browns.

"_Why_?" Santana asks, slight irritation but also a bit of confusion in her tone. But Brittany's eyes are the ones that look confused and she tilts her head to the side.

"Because I care." She explains with ease. It's so simple, but to Santana, nothing is ever that easy.

"Look Britt, I gotta go." Without another word Santana waves and heads down Charles. Leaving Brittan with no apology for being snappy or short.

She's sure that the girl from up the road is probably watching her walk away, most likely stunned. Truth is, Santana's slightly stunned herself. She's never, ever spoken to Brittany in such a way. Not even when they were little, single digit girls and Santana got in trouble when Brittany ate mud on a dare. In fact, she's never even _thought_ about talking to her with such irritation or annoyance before.

As she turns down on Main Street with the intentions of meeting Quinn and her gang of misfits, Santana can't fight that strange and recurring feeling of guilt sweep through her body. She's sure she'll be able to brush off the sensation once she reaches Holly's Daze, and not let on that she's just committed a Knox City sin. Sin being, making Brittany Pierce so sad it looks like she just saw a dog get hit by a car; twice.

* * *

><p>It was a little too easy to slap on a straight, unamused face around Quinn, Kurt, wheelchair kid and the Asian duo. Even if she did look depressed, sad or even mad they probably wouldn't have even picked up on it. Well, Quinn probably. But, they both know the blonde would never bring up issues in mixed company so she was safe with that one. Yet, as she sits at her desk in her room, marble notebook open to the first blank page, she feels lonely.<p>

Surely it's not the first time this particular feeling has ever graced through the little, tight body of one Santana Lopez. But it doesn't make it any less uncomfortable. She shifts in her seat, unable to find a good position that will not leave her with her ass half asleep. Her wrist flicks and the cap of her pen taps on the notebook, making a popping sound that echoes in her room. She looks up from her desk and over her shoulder towards her window and across the way to Brittany's window. Her lips twist and she drops her pen.

She'd gotten home a little before dinner and after a riveting episode of Jeopardy, Santana came straight to her room to see if Brittany was around. But, it's now almost ten at night and she has yet to see the light go on in her friend's room.

Growing frustrated and feeling even worse than she did an hour ago, Santana gets up from her desk and heads to the window. With her marble notebook long forgotten she opens her bedroom window and leans on the sill. If anything or anyone deserved to hear her out, it was going to be Brittany and hopefully she'd be willing to listen.

When Brittany gets home, her father is fast asleep on the recliner with a football game as his white noise. On the kitchen counter is a note from her mother, asking her to let her know when she gets home. She does as requested and knocks on her mother and father's bedroom door, opening it just enough to poke her head through.

"I'm home." She whispers into the darkness.

"Okay sweetie." Mrs. Pierce mutters before turning on her side and leaving her back to face her daughter.

Brittany carefully closes the door and only lets go when she hears the click. She shuts the television off, knowing that in about fifteen minutes or so, her dad will wake up because of the silence and make his way to bed on his own. She puts on the surface light on the microwave so that he will find his way without complete blindness.

Finally reaching her room, she pushes the door open and is more than surprised to find Santana sitting there at the end of her bed. Her dark hair is down, covering her bare shoulder and the tiny hint of light from the bedside lamp only provides Brittany with her silhouette. She closes her bedroom door, quietly and quickly, uncertain if her father is going to be walking by any minute to go to bed. When she turns back around to face Santana, she sees how the other girl's chest rises and falls, almost nervously.

"Can we talk?" Santana's voice is tiny.

"But, we never do that." Brittany tells her, the true meaning behind her statement does not fall short on Santana's waiting ears.

"I know, but…" Santana nods, letting her head tilt from side to side as she realizes how much more difficult the idea of sharing actually is. When the bed dips, she peeks out of the corner of her eye to see Brittany has taken a seat on the side of the bed. "Did you know that I have a half sister?" She asks and looks over her shoulder to gauge Brittany's facial expression. But, of course, she shakes her head because Santana has never said anything about it. "She's two and probably the most adorable thing I have ever seen in my entire life. But," Her smile fades and her eyes drop to where she can make out the shadow of Brittany's hand, resting on the bed beside her. "I don't get to see her so much." She admits almost inaudibly and turns her face towards the window. Brittany doesn't respond, but, opts on remaining quiet in hopes of continuing this wave of sharing from Santana. "When my parents got divorced, my dad practically moved to the other side of town." A throaty chuckle escapes Santana's lips, but Brittany knows it's not because of the humor in her statement. "He married this awful, wretch of a bitch, Patti. And, well, she is _not_ my biggest fan." Brittany frowns, not liking the way this story is going. "She doesn't like me around. My dad doesn't either. He never calls me up just to see how I'm doing anymore. He just buys me things. I think he thinks that's a great way to show me he 'loves' me or whatever. Truth is, it makes me feel less loved than anything. I don't think that I could do anything to make him… I could cure cancer and it wouldn't mean a thing. Besides, he has a whole other family now, so…"

Brittany isn't sure what to say. She wants to tell Santana that she's sure her father loves her to the ends of the earth and back. That he hasn't chosen his new family over his old one. That she is more than positive that Mr. Lopez thinks about his daughter every single day. But, she doesn't say any of those things. This is the first time Santana has ever shared her feelings since she came back to town. It's like an amazing breakthrough that Brittany does not want to end. So, instead of saying any of those words, she reaches out and grabs Santana's hand in her own.

"See," Her voice cracks and Santana looks over her shoulder at the girl who's holding her hand. "I'm a pretty good listener." They smile, sadly, at one another. "When you actually talk."

Brittany tugs on her hand and soon the two are lying side by side, hand in hand, on a twin bed in dim lamp light. They remain quiet for a few moments, the only noises in the room are their breathing and the faint sound of crickets from just outside the blonde's bedroom window. A gentle squeeze of Brittany's fingers around her hand, eases some of the tension in Santana's chest.

"I think I miss home because it's familiar." She admits, shrugging her shoulders and there's the light feeling of Brittany's skin rubbing against her own. "It's the same house we lived in when my parents were married." Santana explains and from the corner of her eye, she can see Brittany nod in understanding. Of course she misses her house, it's the only thing she has left that is part of her 'family'. "But, now it's just me and my mom. She's always…" She shakes her own head this time and closes her eyes. Even Puck doesn't know much about her family.

"What about your brother?" Brittany's curiosity gets the best of her and she interrupts the silence that has brushed over them.

"He's away at college." Santana sighs out, letting her eyes remain closed but more comfortably. "He goes somewhere in Ohio. Like, who goes there on purpose?" She chuckles out with irritation.

"Doesn't he visit? Like, for holidays?" Brittany asks, but when she hears and feels the rustling on the pillow, she knows Santana is shaking her head. "Why?"

"Last time he came to visit was about two years ago, right before the baby was born." She lets out a long breath. "He never returned my e-mails, or calls or texts. Anyway, he and my father got into a fist fight." If it weren't so dark in the room, Santana would have noticed the horrified look on her friend's face. But, the lamp light only provided enough light to just make out the corners of the room where she kept her focus. "I don't know what happened after that. I called Puck…"

"Puck?" Brittany interrupts.

"Oh, yeah, Puck. He's one of my friends from back in Boston." She explains and then after a beat, her shoulders slump further into the bed. "Actually, he's my _only_ friend." This admission is quieter and she can feel a slight heat creep up into her cheeks.

The realization that she literally had one person to rely on back home is kind of depressing to her. Were they even really friends though? All they used to do was cause chaos, get high, drink and have sex, sometimes with each other. Maybe a friendship those things did not make, but she hoped somewhere deep down, they actually were friends.

"He's not." Brittany tells her and turns on her side so that she can just make out Santana's profile.

"What?" She asks in confusion.

"You're only friend." Brittany reminds her, squeezing their hands together as she rests the side of her face on the pillow. Santana smiles inwardly, enjoying the closeness and companionship Brittany provides her and has given her since the very moment they reconnected. "So, what got you sent here?" She finally asks the question on everyone's tongue.

Santana takes in a deep breath, she'd been waiting for the time this question would actually be asked and not danced around. It's not that she's embarrassed really, but more so that she's been wanting to simply slip by the social aspect of Knox and do her time here without having to express herself. But, being around Brittany brings out a different side of her, whether or not she even realizes it.

She spends the next hour and half explaining, in some detail, the actual event that had made the judge decide on sending her out to the sticks. Brittany listens intently as Santana describes the night in question to the best of her ability, not even leaving out the bits and pieces that doesn't necessarily shine a pretty light on her. From the weed to the liquor, the sneaking out, the pills, the girls and then the SUV that Puck had boosted. Santana tells Brittany about the night in jail and how the woman, Jane, was kind to her. How, in the courtroom, her mother cried and her father didn't even look at her.

Brittany doesn't interrupt with questions or even with platitudes of sorrow for her story. She just listens on when Santana chronicles her teenage indiscretions from late nights at parties and raves that faded all the way into the early hours of the morning. She watches the shadow of Santana's mouth move when she lists the thickness of her juvie record that goes from shoplifting to public indecency.

"I'm sure that, after all this, you're probably…" Santana stammers, shakes her head at herself and rubs her fist into her suddenly sleepy eyes.

"I still like you." Brittany reminds her in a soft, sleep haze voice. Santana turns her head with a quizzical stare. "I mean, you had some road blocks or, obstacles." She shrugs her shoulders and lets out a yawn before continuing. "You're still you though." She can see a hint of Santana's face with the help of her lamp and she smiles. "You're beautiful and smart. Your laugh, when you actually _do_ laugh, is infectious. And," She tilts her head on the pillow, letting her eyes fall closed. "Your smile…your smile is like sunshine." Santana can see the small, sleepy grin on Brittany's lips. "I think you're still the you that you wish you were. The one you were is who you still are." She yawns once more and lets out a giggle. "I don't know if that made any sense."

But, oddly enough, Santana thinks it makes perfect and complete sense. Especially hearing it come from Brittany's lips.

They lay there in silence for minutes upon minutes and Santana listens carefully, hearing the familiar sound of soft, easy breathing. She lifts her head up from the pillow and under the stream of moonlight peeking through the window, she sees Brittany's eyes are closed. She wonders how long she'd been talking since Brittany had gone into dreamland. A small chuckle creeps in her throat but she swallows it, settling for a tight lipped grin, not wanting to wake the sleeping blonde. Santana let's her head fall back to the pillow softly and lets out a long awaited sigh. It's one of sleep, thought and a bit of relief.

With a glance to the clock on Brittany's nightstand, Santana figures that it's best for her to head on back to her side of the fence. It probably wouldn't do them any good to get caught in Brittany's twin bed by the Mayor of Knox City. For once, she feels a slight pang of guilt sneaking out on a girl without saying goodnight or goodbye or anything. But, also for once, she's content with the fact that she will at least see her tomorrow.

She looks back over at the girl beside her. Her eyes are still closed, her lips are slightly parted and her hands are bundled up cutely under her chin. A small smile comes to her own lips, because the way Brittany looks kind of reminds her of how she slept the same way when they were younger. Her own head lay comfortably on the pillow as her eyes scan over the peaceful face in front of her. It's hard for her not to focus a little on Brittany's lips. She remembers that night on Aunt Linda's porch steps when she had felt those very lips on her cheek.

They were so soft and gentle against her skin, the memory causes her eyes to close and replay the sense memory. She's curious as to how those lips would feel on her own. Would they still be just as soft? She glances up once more, to make sure that Brittany's eyes are still closed. Nothing would be more awkward than getting caught staring at someone's mouth as they're sleeping.

"Britt." She whispers and lifts her hand up, letting her fingers gently fun through some blonde hair.

Her intention is not so much to wake Brittany up, she's just kind of thinking out loud. She wished she'd never had to stop coming here. That she'd grown up knowing that she had a person like Brittany around back in Boston. With Puck, it's different. Sure, she most definitely considers him a friend. It's just different she figures. Puck never looks at Santana the way Brittany does. No one does. In fact, no one ever has. As her eyes scan over the sleeping blonde's features, she's reminded of the time in the clearing by the Pierce's barn and how Brittany had called her beautiful.

"I think," She says even softer, watching the way her fingers tuck Brittany's hair behind her ear. "I think that you're beautiful too." She gulps, licks her lips and rests her palm against Brittany's cheek, letting her thumb just hover over her lower lip. "I just…" Santana shakes her head while her eyes watch her thumb move through the air over Brittany's lips. "I can't." She breathes out.

Brittany stirs a bit, startling Santana who pulls her hand back. She remains still for a few more moments before finally letting out a breath she had no idea she'd been holding in. Before she carefully slips out of the tiny, twin bed to leave Brittany undisturbed and sleeping soundly, she lets her fingers brush away some blonde hair from her forehead once more. Then, as she lifts her head from the pillow with the intentions of getting up, as if by gravitational force, her lips press softly to Brittany's forehead.

"Goodnight." Santana whispers and then slips through Brittany's window and into the night.


	8. Chapter 8

_**And Promises Made/So, I'll Let My Walls Come Down**_

_**August, 2006**_

_Brittany and Santana find themselves off into the far end of the Pierce's backyard while the adults and younger children stay close to the house. They had been sitting against the cool metal of the shed not quite understanding the need for the rest of the company to crowd around the small fire pit that Mr. Pierce had put together. _

_Brittany grins at her friend when they hear the familiar music of Mr. Pierce's 'Rumors' record playing in the distance, memories crowding their mind. She pushes herself up pulling Santana along with her and requests for them to dance around like they used to do when they were a little younger. She giggles and smiles at the way Santana allows her to drag her into any and every kind of situation._

_The first few songs played are fast paced and the girls jump around letting their hair swing around and their limbs do just the same. They pick up on the fact that someone went over to the turn table to pick out their own track and the beginning chords of 'Songbird' fly through the air and wash over them. They stop their jumping around and their hands flop down at their sides. They stand there in front of the metal shed awkwardly. It's too slow to dance around like they had been and it's too slow to stand there and sway by themselves without looking like they are tripping out on some kind of drug. Brittany takes a quiet but deep breath and steps towards Santana, offering her hand in the process._

_"Dance with me." She requests quietly. It kind of comes out as a question, for there is a bit of uncertainty coursing through her veins at the moment. Santana lifts her gaze from Brittany's hand and is met with those sparkling ocean like blue eyes and her breath catches in her throat. Without another thought she nods and places her hand into Brittany's and takes a step forward to be led along the patches of grass in the Pierce's backyard. "Put your hand here." Brittany directs Santana, pulling on her hand and placing Santana's hand onto her shoulder, gripping the other in her hand tighter. She takes another deep breath and lets her hand slide down her friend's side until it rests on her hip. "Follow." She smiles sweetly and begins to lead them in a dance._

_"Okay." Santana breathes out nervously and she allows herself to be led around in a small set of steps that only bring them in circles but she smiles nonetheless._

_For a short while the girls stare down at their feet, watching them tentatively take steps trying desperately not to step on the other's toes. It takes a few moments to get adjusted but soon enough Brittany lifts her head and stares at Santana who is still looking down and she smiles thoughtfully._

_The way the light of the fire from the other side of the yard lights up small parts of Santana's face, the way it flickers a little and casts tiny shadows over the contours of her cheeks and chin and then her neck until the light hits the exposed skin of her chest. When she lifts her gaze from Santana's chest back up to her face she finds her friend staring back at her with a small tint of pink on her cheeks. Bashfully, Brittany grins and tears her eyes away._

_"You're good." Santana comments, fixing her grip in the blonde's hand. Brittany looks back at her and offers her a small smile of appreciation._

_"I'm not used to leading." Brittany admits making note of their positions and Santana smirks._

_"You lead me well enough." She points out._

_"I guess… I'm just comfortable with you." Brittany states. "You make everything feel easy." Santana tilts her head taking in the comment._

_"So... I'm easy?" She jokes but Brittany's eyes widen suddenly realizing how her words came out. Really, it had only been this summer that they've really grasped sexual innuendos and they've taken complete advantage of them._

_"Oh, no!" Brittany quickly tries to backpedal. "That's not... I meant that..." She sighs, huffs and blushes at her sudden loss for the English language. "What I meant was... when I'm with you, I feel like I can do anything." Brittany clarifies. Their eyes lock, not even paying attention to their motions and the Brittany's hand grips a little further around the Santana's back while tanned hand moves further behind the blonde's neck until her fingers are in the blonde hair._

_"I think you **c****an** do anything."_

* * *

><p><em><strong>December, 2011<strong>_

Santana sits across from Miss Pillsbury, arms crossed over her chest and her eyes half focused on the edge of the desk in front of her. She was sure this week's meeting was going to be the usual sit, listen and nod but she couldn't have been more wrong. If she had given Aunt Linda the few minutes her aunt had requested this morning for a 'talk', then she wouldn't be sitting here dumb struck. As surprised as she should probably be, there's more of a feeling of disappointment which takes away from the shock value of it all.

"Santana?" Miss Pillsbury interrupts the unwanted thought provoked silence with a soft voice. "Santana, I know this is a difficult situation to deal with." She continues and at these words Santana's eyes shoot towards her sharply. The social worker shifts under the young girl's glare and clears her throat as she reaches out to her desk as a way to distract from the obvious tension in the room. "We should look at this as a good thing though." She assures Santana and tries to offer a small smile when she's sure the icy stare has defrosted, even if only a little bit.

"A good thing?" Santana scoffs and rolls her eyes. "_Please_." Her shoulders slump and her eyes fall to the front of the desk again. Miss Pillsbury tilts her head and gives herself a moment to take in Santana's state.

"I understand that you were looking forward to going home to see your parents for the holidays. And this isn't about them _not_ wanting to see you." She tries the 'same side' approach, but at this Santana vehemently shakes her head.

"So my mother's way of showing me she _wants_ to see me is by drinking herself into rehab?" Santana bites back with a jerk of her head. Of course Miss Pillsbury had expected a reaction like this. She's been working with Santana Lopez for three and a half months so her quick retorts laced with bitter sarcasm are of no surprise. "And my father is too busy fucking his twenty year old wife to have time for me." She huffs with desperate irritation. Trying not to appear too frazzled by the teenagers tone or choice of words, Miss Pillsbury tries a different approach.

"Does your father's relationship with your stepmother…"

"Don't call her that." Santana interrupts. Miss Pillsbury nods and lets out a long breath.

"Does your father's relationship with Patti make you feel like he has no time for you?" She asks, trying to be careful with the words she chooses.

"My father's idea of quality time is driving forty minutes across town and picking me up from the corner of my block so that he doesn't have to see my mother." Santana begins to list a day in the life of her relationship with her dad with dark sincerity. "Mind you, this only happens one to two times a month which is exactly ten times less than his court appointed visitation rights." She points out and checks her nails before continuing. "Usually he takes me shopping, the mall or a boutique in town, and hands over his credit card before vanishing for the next three hours. After a shopping spree with my daddy's money, I find him flirting with the girl behind the jewelry counter that he's just bought his new _wife's_ necklace from." Miss Pillsbury tilts her head in confusion and sadness, trying not to let it show as Santana's eyes lift from her lap. "He doesn't even drive me home." She chuckles out in a self deprecating way. "He always seems to get a 'phone call' from _her_ demanding him to get home for some crisis. It's not so bad I guess." She shrugs her shoulders. "As long as I snag a bottle of tequila for the bus driver, I'm good for four rides."

Miss Pillsbury glances down at the files in front of her and nods once. Nowhere in these pages or reports about the girl in front of her has any of this information. It's clear that the divorce of her parents had a huge impact on her. It would be a little surprising if it didn't impact her. But unfortunately for Santana's case, the impact sent her into an extreme spiral of acting out and bad decisions. Decisions that she learned from the actions of her parents.

"Have you talked to your dad about any of this?" Miss Pillsbury questions, with concern and curiosity.

"About what?" Santana asks in return.

"How it makes you feel when he doesn't value his time with you." She explains and Santana scoffs at the statement.

"Oh, please." Santana crosses her legs at the knee and tightens her arms over her chest. "If there's anything I learned from my parents, it's to leave feelings at the door. All they do is complicate an already complicated situation."

"Are you saying then, that there are no things you have strong feelings about?"

"I'm not a robot, of course I do." Santana replies with pent up annoyance. "I have strong feelings against hypocrisy, our unstable government and of course I feel blessed about the endless amount of breadsticks at Breadstix." She smiles and tilts her head sweetly to the side.

"I meant…"

"I know what you meant." Santana interrupts her and glares. "I'm used to it."

"What is it that you are used to, Santana?" Miss Pillsbury wonders. Santana sighs and glances briefly over at the clock on the social worker's desk only to be deflated that she has only endured thirty minutes of her hour.

Santana can't fight her silence. Truth is, it seems that what she is used to is being ignored. She's ignored by her mother who would rather spend quality time at a bar after work or in front of the television slowly but surely emptying a bottle of whatever it is she has in the liquor cabinet. Her father has been ignoring her for the last five and a half years too, spending all of his time with his new family. It's as though she and her brother don't exist. She gets that her parents are never going to repair their problems and aren't going to get back together. That's a given. She just never actually imagined that she and her brother would be the casualties of their war.

"Puck, my friend from home, he and I," She finally starts and takes a deep breath before she continues. "We're cut from the same clothe." She chances a glance at Miss Pillsbury who is listening intently, leaving her pen on the desk to show she has her attention. "We come from broken homes. We live with our single mothers who take an obvious liking to their liquid diet." Santana points out her mother's substance abuse, something she has previously tried to deny and shrug off as something not so serious. "You'd think that with women who drink so much, they'd notice when their precious tequila was missing." She chuckles and shakes her head. "Both our dads left when we were twelve and we met at an after school program our moms made us go to so they could go to their own counseling which wound up being at a bar. We tried the straight and narrow." Her eyes fall to her lap where her hands are softly wrestling with each other. "We even joined the stupid glee club at our school. All we wanted was for our parents to come and see us. It wasn't about getting our family together. It was about… I don't know what it was about anymore. I think we just wanted to know they still loved us even though they hated each other. But, no matter how hard we practiced and how good we were, it didn't matter."

"I'm sure that it did." Miss Pillsbury interjects, but Santana rolls her eyes and lets out a pained sigh.

"I'll never forget my last show. I was a freshman and I had a solo. We came in second but I wouldn't have even cared if we came in last." Santana tilts her head in thought and bites on her bottom lip at the memories. "I just wanted my mother to tell me I _had_ something. That I was special. But, she didn't. She didn't even come to the show." She moves her head upright and shakes it to herself. "When I got home, she was passed out in front of the television. She looked like she was going to come, she was all dressed up. But, the empty bottle by the recliner somehow prevented her from doing so. I called Puck, he came over and we waited outside of a 7-11 for someone to buy us beer. I mean, we'd only ever known to mask our feelings. It's what we'd seen our mothers do for so long."

After a few more uncomfortable minutes of silence, safe for the sound of Miss Pillsbury writing down notes about their session, Santana is finally getting out of that suffocating office. It's the first time since she's been here that she wishes Brittany was parked right out there waiting for her. She'd give anything to be taken away, somewhere far and do anything. She'd even settle for doing nothing.

But, instead of Brittany or even just enough time to herself to let out a sigh in defeat, she is greeted by Mayor Pierce standing on the sidewalk. Her feet stop moving abruptly and the door slowly closes behind her. She contemplates pretending like she doesn't see the woman, but that's too juvenile. It's clear that this woman is here on business; personal business.

"Umm," Santana hums and glances down Charles before she takes a step forward. "Hey, Mrs. Pierce." She slaps a smile on her face, both of them knowing it's fake.

"Hello, Santana." The mayor replies in a voice that makes the air taste stale and Santana is sure the sun even just hid behind a cloud. "You know," She steps closer, arms over her chest and she regards Santana with a tilt of her head, the gesture looking as if she is about to share regretful information. "My daughter means a lot to me." Santana's brow furrows and her head jerks back slightly.

"Oh, uhh…" Santana is kind of at a loss for words because the way Mrs. Pierce says this, it sounds like a threat. "Good for you." She decides on, giving the woman an approving nod.

"Yes, good for me." Mayor Pierce repeats in that sort of authoritative tone that a lot of power greedy grownups use. "I don't want to take up either of our time, so let me just get to it." She starts and takes one more step forward. "I know your kind." Mrs. Pierce says in a hushed voice, but the animosity and disapproval is not softened in her tone. Santana's head snaps up at her, shoots the woman a bewildered glare. "From the big city, you tell your stories to small town girls and make empty promises." She sounds bitter, angry even.

"_I don't make promises to anyone_." Santana comments defensively.

"Not yet." Mrs. Pierce looks towards the end of Charles Street. "Brittany is an impressionable girl. She has flights of fancy, daydreams… she's whimsical." Santana follows the older woman's gaze and smiles when her eyes fall onto said blonde who is walking their way.

"Yeah." She breathes out. "I know."

"She's also foolish." Mrs. Pierce adds, catching the young girl's attention once again and she narrows her eyes at the older woman. "You think you're special because my daughter has taken a liking to you. Well, let me enlighten you. Brittany has a soft spot for wounded animals. She tends to them because they are too weak to live in this world without her. But these animals are like leeches and they suck her dry. Eventually, she'll drop you. She feels sorry for you."

Santana eyes Mayor Pierce carefully. She vaguely remembers this woman telling her when she first arrived that she'd 'read up' on her and knew all there was to know. Sure, she's not really surprised that she is getting told to stay away from someone, especially someone like Brittany. It's not like the Mayor of Knox City doesn't have power over people. Shit, she blackmailed her own daughter. Clearly this woman has zero boundaries. But, right now, Santana is in no fighting mood.

"Hey, Santana." Brittany greets, all smiles and completely unaware of the tension in the air. Mrs. Pierce steps away from her and turns towards her daughter. She smiles and Santana cringes at the expression because it is so false.

"Hey." Santana says, letting a genuine but guarded smile come to her lips when she looks over at Brittany. The cheerleader awkwardly looks between the two people in front of her.

"What's goin' on?" Brittany asks and turns towards her mother.

"Oh, I was just asking Santana how things have been going." Mrs. Pierce lies through her teeth, sending Santana a snake like grin. Brittany, completely oblivious, beams over at Santana anxious to hear if her thoughts on Knox have changed yet. Santana rolls her eyes to herself before looking back over at Brittany, tight lipped smile and a nod.

"And I was telling Madam Mayor here how fantastic it's been here in her _lovely _town." Santana joins in on the obvious lie, letting her eyes fall to Mrs. Pierce. "It's_ so_ welcoming." She tilts her head to the side in that sickeningly sweet over the top kind of way. "Well," Santana interrupts the really uncomfortable silence and menacing stare she is receiving. "I have to go. My aunt is probably wondering where I am. I do have to be home before sunset or my court ordered ankle bracelet will start beeping." She jokes, but the bitter sarcasm in her voice does not go unnoticed, by either Pierce women.

"Oh." Brittany's shoulders slump and she tries studying Santana's face, but her friend is looking everywhere but at her. "Do you… my truck is parked down that way." She motions down Charles where her truck is indeed parked. "I can drop you home and then come back here." She suggests and looks to her mom to see if her offer is okay by her. But, before Mrs. Pierce can come up with a quick response to prevent that from happening, Santana does.

"No, no need." Santana shakes her head and adjusts the strap of her bag on her shoulder. "I was kinda lookin' forward to walking." Her lips twist and she finally lets her eyes fall back to Brittany. "Thanks though." Brittany smiles sadly and nods her head as she watches Santana turn away to make her way home.

Santana is sure that Mrs. Pierce is desperately trying to distract her daughter with something irrelevant as much as she is sure that Brittany is staring at her walking away. But, she can't look back. The tears in her eyes are her motivation for the solitude this long walk home will give her. It's not often that Santana cries. In fact, she tries to not have time for such superficial emotional reactions. The one emotion she does make time for though is anger. Her anger, however, is subsided along with those tears threatening to start fully building when she turns the corner and spots a familiar blonde.

Just outside of the Knox City Post Office, Santana sees Holly Holiday putting up flyers for an open mic night over at Holly's Daze. The older woman doesn't notice her at first, seeing as she is pretty busy stapling hot pink pages to a dull board. Santana looks over the few randomly colored papers begging artists to come down to the small café on the corner of Charles Street.

When her feet shuffle against the gravel Holly glances over her shoulder and smiles when she recognizes Santana. She staples a few more times and then steps back to admire her handy work. Turning her head she looks at Santana whose eyes are scanning over the entire board, which is pretty much filled up with all of Holly's flyers.

"You sing, Little Lopez?" Holly asks as she tucks the stack of her flyers under her arm. Santana's eyes flicker towards Holly and she shrugs her shoulders.

"I used to." She admits in a small voice, trying her hardest not to let her head hang.

"Used to?" Holly asks in a bit of shock. She spins around to fully face Santana and crosses her arms, making sure to not let her flyers fall free. "You're too young to say you _used_ to do something." She explains in a matter of fact kind of way. Santana nods and lets her stare longer on the bright colored pages under Holly's arm.

"I'm too young for a lot." She tells her, finally looking her in the eyes. Holly studies her for a few seconds and then nods to herself as she pulls out one of the flyers and holds it out for her.

"Music is like chicken soup for the soul… for the heart." Holly explains as Santana slowly takes the offered page. "Especially the broken ones." Holly smiles sadly, although she means it to be uplifting, and then she's heading down the other way to post some more flyers.

"Yeah," Santana sighs. "So I hear." She whispers to herself, remembering Brittany's take on music and its affect on life.

It takes a while, a long while, until Santana is walking through the threshold of Aunt Linda's house. She guesses she had walked pretty slowly because the smell of dinner is already wafting its way into the living room. The clanging of pans and pots gives it away too, but she tries to avoid the chef because she wants some more alone time.

Santana is sure she's in the clear when she closes her door, but the knock she hears tells her differently. Instead of pulling it open like she normally would, she holds the door knob and rests her hand against the wood of the frame. She opens her mouth to say 'what' or the usual 'who is it', but nothing comes out. She clears her throat and licks her lips, trying to keep herself steady.

"What?" She finally calls out after another short round of knocks and a 'Santana, are you in there alone?'.

"Are you okay?" Aunt Linda asks and Santana's head drops, rests her chin to her chest and shuts her eyes. "I talked to Miss Pillsbury. She called me after you left." She can imagine the way her aunt is probably standing there, on the other side of the door with a dish towel between her hands, tugging at it. "I'm sorry you had to hear it from her." Santana shakes her head to herself and sadly chuckles. Everyone is always apologizing for everyone else.

"It's _fine_." Santana manages to get out through gritted teeth. She's not mad at her aunt, but she doesn't exactly want to talk about anything.

"Can you come out and say that to my face. At least then I can pretend to believe you." Aunt Linda says through the door. But, she doesn't open it and she doesn't say anything either. She hears her aunt sigh and then a shuffle that sounds like a hand on the door.

After that, she can hear the sound of Aunt Linda walking down the hall and then the footsteps just fade away. Santana stands there for a few moments. Hand flat against the door and the other around the door knob as though ensuring no one to leave or to enter. Her eyes, still shut tightly, beg to keep anything resembling tears from forming and falling. She clenches her jaw as she takes in a few deep breathes, giving herself the power to finally pull away from the door.

Her body finds its way to her bed and she falls unceremoniously down onto it. With eyes now open, she stares up at the ceiling that could probably use a nice coat of paint and thinks about what she's just learned. She'd always pushed her mother's drinking down, making it seem like it wasn't what it was, or _is_ as it may be. In one of her first meetings with Miss Pillsbury, she'd even defended her mother's drinking making it seem as though it wasn't an every hour of the day thing.

She shakes her head because she's been a fool. Everything she thought she knew were lies she told herself to feel better about her life. With her brother gone and her father who would rather spend time with his new family, her mother was the only stable thing in her life. Even when Santana hated her, she loved her because her mom was all she really had to call family. But, instead of feeling the same, her mom found comfort and companionship at the bottom of a bottle rather than building a relationship with her own daughter.

If she were home, back in Boston, she would have called Puck as soon as she found out. He would have picked her up and brought her to some party out in a field or an underground club. He would have helped her numb everything with an array of pharmaceuticals and a bottle of whatever he managed to swipe from his mother.

But, she's not in Boston. She doesn't even know what happened to Puck after they got pinched. For all she knows, he's locked up somewhere in a juvenile facility being someone's bitch. Or worse, if there even is a worse. Just because Puck's not around, doesn't mean she can't get rid of all of these _feelings_.

She jumps up from her bed and quickly moves towards her closet. Oddly enough, she still hasn't fully unpacked. Her suitcase is still half filled with unworn clothes, shoes and some hair products. But it's what's underneath it all is what she is looking for. She rummages through the clothes and such, digging deep down to the bottom in search of the cool feeling of glass. Her fingers wrap around the neck of a bottle she had stashed when she first arrived and she finally smiles. When she pulls it out, she is relieved to find that the bottle of tequila she had bought with her fake ID down on Main Street is still half full.

She's never had much of a problem handling more than this, but she then thinks of her mother sitting at home all alone, drinking her worries away by herself. She's not her mother and she is not about to act like her either. So, instead of sitting in her room and wallowing in the bottom of a bottle of Jose, she grabs her cell phone and scrolls through her phone book. It's a short list, so she doesn't have to search long.

"Hey." She says when there's an answer. Her thumb rubs over the label on the bottle and turns it from side to side, watching the liquid swish back and forth. "Can you come get me?" She quickly asks, wanting to send her request as urgent but not desperate.

In about fifteen minutes, Quinn is parked down past the Pierce house as Santana had instructed. After taping a note on the outside of her bedroom door for Aunt Linda, Santana sneaks out through her window to go meet up with her friend a few ways down the road. As she passes the Pierce house, she notices Brittany's truck isn't there. She wonders if the girl next door is still out with her mother. But, that's a fleeting thought, because she has more pressing matters to tend to, like the one in her hand.

Quinn doesn't ask questions when Santana climbs into her truck, bottle of liquor in hand. As soon as the door shuts she throws them into gear and drives down the South Service Road the way she had just came. The radio is faintly playing as they travel down the dusty, dirt road. Neither really caring if it was off entirely. Quinn forgoes bringing them into town to any of the usual hangouts, feeling that this is supposed to be a just them kind of mission.

Just past their school is an old field house for a closed down school in a town that no longer exists. No one knows what happened to the town or even the school, because it had closed when most of the Knox City High School students' parents were in high school. But, it's not that much forgotten because a lot of the town's teens find ways of using it. Some use it as a hangout for drinking and other social aspects. Some park at the field house to make out while others have been seen during summer days having pick-up football games and or picnics with friends.

For them, the field house is going to serve as a safe place. Somewhere Quinn is taking Santana in hopes of letting her feel free to open up about whatever it is that has brought this obvious cloud over head. When she parks on the far side of the field, she leaves the truck running as to allow the music and sound of the engine to be used as a way to make it less silent.

Santana looks around, unimpressed at their current location, but appreciative of the lack of town folk loitering in her personal space. She untwists the bottle of Jose and takes a swig, only making a face as it burns its way down to her stomach. After her second and smoother sip, she offers the bottle over to Quinn who hesitantly accepts.

"My mom's in rehab." Santana says in a low voice. Quinn looks over at her, unsure of what her response is supposed to be. She turns the bottle around in her hands, equally uncertain if she should be encouraging drinking at this moment. Before she can fully debate that in her mind though, Santana reaches out and pulls the tequila from her. "My dad's a dick, his wife's a bitch, my brother is selfish and my mom's an alcoholic." She plasters a fake smile on her face and sends a wink to Quinn. With a lift of the bottle as though toasting the occasion, she tosses back another double shot. "Go team." She manages through the soothing burn of alcohol, handing the bottle back over to Quinn.

They are momentarily interrupted by the sound of Santana's cell phone ringing. She groans, pulling it out of her bag and sighs as she presses the ignore button. It's Aunt Linda. Obviously it's of no surprise that she's calling. Santana figures that she must have found that note. What's also obvious is that she is going to be in trouble as soon as she sets foot in that house.

"How is it that other people's fuck ups can fuck up your life?" Santana muses between sips. Quinn tilts her head and twists her lips. She and Santana have had their mini heart to hearts here and there since her friend's arrival. But those times have seldom turned into the ultimate sharing moment like in a Lifetime movie.

"Well," Quinn clears her throat and shifts in her spot in the driver's seat. "I think it makes sense for the important people in your life to have some kind of effect on you." Santana scoffs at this idea.

"_Well_, the important people in my life have fucked me over one too many times." Santana explains. "So, I'm done."

"With what?"

"Everything." Santana waves her hand in the air with a huff. "All that crap about families having unconditional love is bull crap." She tells her friend. "Some people just shouldn't be parents." As soon as the words leave her lips, she clamps her mouth shut and sends Quinn a nervous sideways glance. Quinn's eyes drop to her lap and she nods, understanding some of what Santana means. "I'm sorry." She whispers, knowing she's stepped over an invisible line.

"It's okay." Quinn shakes it off and Santana wishes she could crawl down into the bottom of the bottle in her hand because she rarely feels bad for the things that she says.

"What exactly happened anyway?" Santana asks, figuring she can make up for her verbal mistake by getting some of the finer details to the story. Quinn sadly smirks and reaches out for the tequila.

"I was only fifteen," Quinn starts and takes a sip before continuing. "I didn't have money. I knew, if I had the baby, I'd be miserable for the rest of my life. But, I also felt like if I had an abortion, I'd feel like I just signed on the devil's dotted line. It's hard. Growin' up in Texas." She explains, motioning towards the town as though it will give Santana an idea. "I dunno how it is for ya'll in the big city. But, here, values are like law. These Christian values that are drilled into our brains. He wasn't gonna be there for any of it. I knew it before he even knew it. When I told him..." She looks to the side as a tear falls from her eye, but she quickly wipes it away. "And he asked if it was his?" She says incredulously. "He was my first." The corners of her mouth turn upside down. "You always hear how first times are supposed to be magical."

"They're not." Santana interjects, vaguely remembering her first time all those years ago.

"It was after a game." Quinn breathes out innocently, her eyes looking as though she is replaying the events. "We'd just beat the top team, making us number one. He asked me to come to a party. He was a sophomore captain, how do I say no?" She smiles sadly down at the nearly empty bottle and hands it back over to Santana. "He got me drunk off wine coolers and told me I was beautiful." A chuckle escapes her lips, only it's not infectious because it's not funny. "He said he loved me." She adds, which only makes the story that much sadder.

"Love doesn't exist." Santana lets out before finishing the rest of the liquor. Quinn's eyebrows furrow and she watches as the bottle is tossed out her window. "It's a made up, fairytale word used to make people feel better about their sad little lives."

"Why are you so bent out of shape about love?" Quinn asks. It's been a few times now that Santana has expressed her distaste for the feeling. She makes the word itself sound like a curse.

"Because, it's a waste of time." Santana simply tells her.

"How do _you_ know? Have you ever been in love?" She wonders that maybe Santana has such hard feelings for such a thing is because she had a bad experience. Santana laughs, waving off the idea that she'd ever considered loving anyone or anything.

"Please. I'm not one of those fools who think something like that can change a person. For the good anyway." She shakes her head at the idea and the reasons for her feelings towards love. "I've seen what 'love' can do. It's a fuckin' fantasy world people live in. If my parents were in love then they would still be together, my dad wouldn't hate me and my mom wouldn't have drank herself into a rehab center. It's a trap that people fall into and it never has a good ending." Quinn watches Santana turn her focus to her nails, as though they are more interesting than this conversation. She can't help but wonder why someone can be so turned off from the world's apparent best feeling in the world. How someone can think of love as some old wives tale or mythical joke on the human race. Maybe she's never been in love herself, but Quinn can understand a different form of it.

"You parents split up, so fucking what? It has nothing to do with you. Their love faded or maybe they never had it but, they love you. If they didn't they wouldn't have sent you here. They would have let you continue being reckless and make stupid choices and let you wind up in jail or something." Quinn spits out in frustration. Santana is a bit taken back, but she maintains her cool and calm exterior. "You think that your parents just abandoned you? You think that they just forgot about you, that you even exist? You're severely delusional." She explains, knowing that she isn't going to get an immediate reaction out of Santana other than avoidance. "Parents _never_ forget about their kids. Their children are the first thing that enters their mind when they wake up. The last thing they worry about before they fall asleep. Does she know I love her? Does she know I did what I did because of that? Does she understand? Will they ever understand?" Quinn lowers her eyes and shakes her head. Santana's fingers are still loosely wrapped around the neck of the bottle and she wonders if this is what makes her feel close to her mother.

"You can go ahead and feel sorry for yourself, but, you're the only one whose gonna do it. You have no clue how exhausting it is to be a parent. I know that all I think about is that baby girl I gave up two years ago. Hoping… praying that I did right by her. Wondering if she smiles and if she does, does she have my smile? Does she laugh? What does it sound like? Is she scared ever?" Quinn pauses, staring off into the evening sky as though looking for the sparkling eyes of the little girl she gave away. "I'll never know because I don't have the luxury of watching her grow and become her own person. I don't get to hear her first words, see her take her first steps or hold her when she cries but it doesn't make me love her any less. So, no, you don't get to be mad or whatever at your parents because I'm sure they did and are doing the best they can. Because that's all we can do to do right by our kids." Santana finally turns her head towards her, but her eyes remain on the bottle. "Sure there are books for parents but there is no set in stone play book on how to be the perfect mom or dad. We go by guts and heart. They love you. I love her and that's why I did what I did. They are just so desperately trying to do right by you. Don't blame them or hate them or punish them either. If for any reason at all… do it for me." Quinn begs, desperate for at least a little of what she says can sneak past Santana's thick skull. "And if not even for me, do it for Brittany. She has enough hope and understanding for the entire world." She sighs when Santana shoots her a perplexed look. "You're _so closed off_ to anything and everything that you're ruining something that could be perfect. You're so _angry_ with love, but, how can you be? You're so blind. Open your eyes Santana, because love is staring you right in the face."

"_What_?" Santana spits out, utterly confused. Quinn shakes her head and glances out the window. The sound of radio static, music and the engine interrupt them for a few long seconds.

"Out of everything I just said to you," Quinn quirks an eyebrow and smirks. "You respond with a '_what'_? What are you five?"

"Well, I'm not about to shell out comments about your 'I'm a sad teen mom' speech." Santana explains as she inspects her nails under the moonlight.

"I guess you haven't figured it out yet." Quinn hums as she wraps her fingers around the steering wheel as a means of distraction.

"What's that?"

"Nothing." Quinn shakes her head and puts the truck into reverse, ready to take this pity party back home. "Just, forget it."

Santana doesn't forget it, but she leaves the conversation in that abandoned field. The ride back to Aunt Linda's is quiet for the most part, both girls mulling over the things they had shared with each other tonight. Luckily, Quinn doesn't seem cold to her when she drops her off. She gives her a smile that sort of comforts her and lets her know that regardless of how they speak to one another, it's because they care. As Quinn drives away she wonders when Santana will finally understand what love actually is and that it does in fact exist.

Santana is surprised when Aunt Linda doesn't scold her for running out and missing dinner. She doesn't yell at her for even smelling like tequila. Instead, she hugs her niece and kisses her cheek. When she pulls back, she cups Santana's face in her hands and sadly smiles at her. Her fingers tuck some of her dark hair behind her ears and she tells her that there is some leftovers in the kitchen and that she's going to go to bed.

* * *

><p>The ride to school is thankfully filled with Brittany talking animatedly about the impending State Championship game coming. Santana tries her best to appear enthused, simply because Brittany is excited about it. As much as she wants to ask her to pull over so she can inform her of everything that has happened in the past twenty four house, she bites her tongue because she doesn't want to bring <em>everyone<em> down with her.

She manages to make it to English class without having to go into any detail about how her night was, telling Brittany it was uneventful. As always, Brittany apologizes for her mother if she had said something rude or outlandish, which she is usually known for. But, Santana shrugs it off, telling Brittany that it was nothing important and that her mother was in fact asking her about how her time in Knox has been. She's sure as shit knows how it feels to be disappointed in a mother, so she isn't about to extend that feeling to Brittany.

When she walks into English class she takes her usual spot in the back of the room right next to Quinn. The two share a brief smile that reads 'hey' and they get ready for the lecture coming their way. Their teacher explains to the class that she has read everyone's essays on Hamlet, but that she isn't sure everyone fully grasps the concept of what it's about. She tells them she'd wanted their own interpretation and not something they copied off of Wikipedia. Santana rolls her eyes, only wishing she'd had that opportunity.

Since she's been staying with Aunt Linda, she hasn't been able to use the internet at all. Aunt Linda believes in books, which Santana can appreciate because she does like to read. But a lot of information is easily gathered on the internet rather than having to peruse books upon books. Of course, Aunt Linda only argues that she didn't have the internet growing up and she did just fine in school. It's not just school work Santana wants to get to faster, she hasn't been able to check her Facebook since she left Boston. For all she knows the news feeds could be running rampant about what has happened to her and Puck, something she has no knowledge of.

She's taken from her thoughts when Mrs. Roman announces that she is going to read an excerpt from an essay of a student from one of her classes. Everyone groans, probably just like her, hoping that it isn't one of their papers that is about to be read out loud.

"'To be or not to be, that really isn't the question, but the choice we need to make.'" The teacher grins proudly. "'Is it to be what is expected of us and to become whatever it is that our parents dream for us? Or is it _not_ to be what they want and choose to be who we are and become who we want to be? Who are we supposed to be? What do you want for yourself? That is the question.'" Mrs. Roman lowers the paper and looks around the class at her students, excitedly waiting their responses.

"Gay!" One of the football player's fakely coughs and there are a few snickers from the rest of the class. Santana and Quinn share a look and both roll their eyes. Mrs. Roman gives the boys a look, but disregards them as she moves around the front of the room.

"Sounds like something a girl would write." Another guy comments.

"Hummel probably wrote that." Karofsky announces and gets a few laughs in response. Santana leans over to Quinn and taps her pen to her friend's notebook to get her attention.

"Why is this guy such an asshole?" She asks, nodding her head in Dave's direction.

"Last year he bullied Kurt real bad." Quinn tells her quietly and Santana furrows her brow as she stares the kid down.

"Settle down class." Mrs. Roman tries to get the side talk to quiet and focus on the topic at hand. "What do you think of this passage?" She asks, obviously desperate to get the class to participate. Her eyes land on the back of the room and notices Santana whispering to Quinn. "Santana, did you have something to add?" The teacher asks, obviously catching Santana whispering to Quinn in the middle of the discussion. Santana's eyes widen like any teenager would by being called out by the teacher in the middle of class. She slowly leans back to her own desk and taps her pen against her books, clearing her throat as she comes up with a response.

"Actually, I think it's a pretty radical move of this school _and_ town for that matter to still be teaching Shakespeare to today's youth. What with all of the teen suicides gracing the covers of newspapers, it would seem as though Knox City is somewhat glorifying this kind of lifestyle." She explains, trying to ignore the looks from her peers she can sense out of the corners of her eyes. "While I can enjoy sharing thoughts on literature, I think it's important not to ignore the reactions of others. You stand there reading a paragraph from someone's paper and completely ignore the peanut gallery who are bullying another student's work. I'm sure you assume it's 'all in good fun' and 'kids will be kids', but my aunt always says 'when you assume, you make an ass out of you and me'." Quinn sucks in her lips, trying to cover up her smirk and the other students whisper.

"That's enough, Santana." Mrs. Roman tells her in a soft but stern voice and turns towards the other side of the classroom hoping that she's put an end to that.

"But, I thought this was an open discussion?" Santana asks with a slightly amused chuckle and leans back in her chair.

"An open discussion about _Hamlet_." The teacher points out and moves from behind her desk to the front of it, feeling confident she's gained control of the room again.

"You haven't even given me the chance to explain." Santana defends. Mrs. Roman sighs and waves towards Santana to give her the floor once more and the rest of the class watches on as the show continues. "School, not just this one, is like a story by Shakespeare. Everyone ignores the obvious problems, either assuming they will go away or that the 'rumors' are true. Instead of investigating or defending, they take extreme measures. Teachers ignore the bullying because they figure it will go away, but it doesn't. When the school is going around calling a girl a slut, the faculty assume it's true because _everyone_ is saying it. Shakespeare writes his most troubled characters only finding solace in death, whether they are the killed or the killer. Sometimes both."

"And a lot of these rumors and false truths are usually brought on by society." Quinn interjects, garnering an appreciative smile and nod from Santana.

"Shakespeare is one of the world's most talented writers of all time. His work is art and should be subject to perception no matter how juvenile or deranged." Mrs. Roman explains, trying her best to keep her composure.

"Exactly my point. But, art or not, a world where there are kids who are afraid to go to school because of who they are is a fact. I can list, as I'm sure you would as well, all of the works in which Shakespeare's main characters or loved ones die due to these societal preferences or flaws." Santana continues with a sturdy jab of her pen cap into the very book they are discussing.

"I doubt that you with your minimal high school education can fully grasp the ideals and morals that Shakespeare was trying to profess in these stories." Mrs. Roman says in a very condescending tone and Santana does nothing to hide her irritation. There's nothing like adults thinking they know better just because they are old.

"And a woman who probably has _two_ PhD's in a dead author's literary work comparing it to communism makes you more knowledgeable?" She challenges with an overly confident smirk. "Other than me _not_ agreeing with you, I am highly offended that since I'm seventeen I'm looked down upon for my understanding of fact and more importantly my opinions. I mean, isn't that what English class really is anyway? Opinion." She arches an eyebrow and glances briefly at her fellow classmates who could care less about Shakespeare and are more interested in her causing a disruption and fighting with a teacher. "We read a bunch of novels, plays and poems and write lengthy essays about how we feel or what we think about the main characters choices or failures. Because, all these questions _really_ want us to do is look into ourselves 'cause whatever answer we give is a direct reflection of how we feel about ourselves and the world around us. If you ask me, whoever wrote that essay was right."

"Enough." Mrs. Roman crosses her arms over her chest, sending Santana a look of warning.

"So, now I'm forced into silent submission because I don't agree with the apparent morality that is Shakespeare's work." Santana scoffs and crosses her arms in response to her teacher's standoff position.

"I said that's enough." Mrs. Roman repeats, but this time with more volume.

"I once read that Shakespeare had men play the female roles in his plays because he was gay. If that is in fact true, then more power to him for dancing on the line of societies pressures to be 'normal'." Santana ignores her teacher's demands to end her long rant and even Quinn who taps her arm to get her to shut up. "But, maybe the reason for all the death, tragedy and true loves torn apart in his stories is because he lived in a world so similar to the one we live in today. I guess I find it terrifyingly sad that a super old dead guy went through the same things so many of today's gay youth is struggling with at this very moment."

"Dyke." A football player coughs out and sends a few of the students in the room into half covered up fits of laughter. Santana rolls her eyes and turns around in her chair to give Karofsky a glare.

"You have something to say, say it." She spits out and the class's giggles simmer down. "Don't be a pussy and fake cough it into your gorilla fist." The other students gasp and go wide eyed at the challenge. Karofsky sits up in his chair and leans his forearms in his desk.

"Homo's are always saying everyone else is gay. Just sayin'." Karofsky replies with a smug look, but Santana just smirks back.

"_So_," She drawls out and turns fully around in her desk chair. "Are you calling _me_ gay? Does that mean _you're_ gay? Just sayin'."

"That's not…" He stammers, but a few of the other kids are already laughing quietly behind him.

"While I find labeling sexuality is irrelevant, especially when it comes to defending basic human rights, yes, I am." She says topped with a sweet, sarcastic smile. "Oh and the word you're looking for is _lesbian_."

"Santana!" Mrs. Roman's voice rises and she claps her hand, finally getting the attention of the entire room. "Congratulations, you get to stay after class."

Santana is of course deflated. Even when she tries to participate in good things like school, she manages to get herself into trouble. She spends the remaining twenty minutes left of class doodling in her notebook, dreading what awaits her when the bell rings.

She's not at all surprised when she is being escorted by Mrs. Roman herself down to the Principal's office. A lot of the students moving from class to class stare and whisper, wondering what she did and how much trouble she's going to get in. She waits in the outer office while Mrs. Roman obviously tells Principal Figgins the half truth of what happened in class.

"Miss Lopez," Principal Figgins starts and laces his fingers together on his desk. "Mrs. Roman claims you were being insubordinate, interrupting a class discussion to fulfill some sort of teenage need to argue." Santana crinkles her nose and stares at the man in confusion.

"It was an open discussion about an assignment. I didn't know I needed a note from my mom to speak my mind." She defends. "Look, can we just point out the rainbow elephant in the room?" Santana cuts off the adults before they can start talking again, catching their attention. "It's clear here that Mrs. Roman is your typical bible thumping homophobe. It's not my fault that she lives on the one way straight and narrow. I guess that's bound to happen in this dump of a town."

"_I am not a homophobe_." Mrs. Roman argues and takes a step closer to the principal's desk. "I have a gay uncle." Santana chuckles.

"Well, good for your uncle." She rolls her eyes and crosses her legs at the knee. "Let me lay it out for you. I was simply defending another student's work." She claps her hands and rests them to her lap. Principal Figgins shares a look with Mrs. Roman before sighing and clearing his throat.

"Since this is the first time you've been to my office, I will let you off with a warning." He explains, not even bothering to finish the paper work he had started when she had walked in.

Instead of arguing about how those stupid meathead football players should be the ones getting warnings, Santana nods in agreement. Hopefully the news of her being sent to the Principal's office stays off of her weekly reports to Miss P and that her aunt doesn't get a call. The last thing she needs is those two women on her back, even more than they already are.

The bell rings, signaling that second period is over, which she has clearly missed entirely. When she walks out into the hall, she is greeted by a concerned look Brittany. She slowly walks towards the cheerleader, wondering what it is that she had heard in the past forty two minutes that made her wait outside for her. But, before either girl can get a word out, someone else gets her attention.

"Hey, Blow-pez." A guy's voice calls out and when she turns in the direction, she is met with an ice facial. The shock of cold and the heat of her anger makes her unable to pick just one emotion. Her eyes are burning and she spits out some of the ice that got in her mouth. She can tell by the flavor that it's a slushie, a cherry slushie. "Oh, wait," She opens her eyes just enough to see that it's Karofsky and some other letterman. "She doesn't blow." He jokes and even though it's lame, his stupid friend finds it hilarious and hi-fives him.

"Are you okay?" Brittany asks, using her thumbs to push the icy drink away from Santana's eyes. "Come on," She says softly when there's no response and she grabs at Santana's hand. "Follow me."

Santana can only see the blurry figure of Brittany in front of her and when the air mixing with the slushie stings, she closes her eyes. She trusts Brittany to get her safely to where ever it is she is taking her, plus she doesn't have the energy to scowl over at her peers staring slack jawed and laughing at her.

"Is this icy facial a common occurrence?" Santana asks when she knows they are alone. Brittany sighs and moves towards her cheerleading locker. Hearing the sound of a combination lock being turned, Santana peeks one eye open, seeing that they are in fact in the cheerleading locker room.

"Yeah." Brittany answers, not at all impressed at the way this school's hierarchy maintains order. "Here." She says as she shoves a towel into Santana's hand. "Come on, you should rinse that stuff out of your eyes."

"Thanks." Santana mutters as she is lead through the twists and turns of the otherwise forbidden locker room. When she gets to the sink, Brittany holds her hair back for her so she can wash her face off without getting her hair wet. "At least it tastes delicious." She comments while she presses her fingers to her skin to see if it's still sticky.

"I guess." Brittany shrugs, letting go of Santana's hair when she stands up right and wipes her face down with the towel.

"Has this ever happened to you?" She asks, wondering if there was actually a mean enough person to toss a slushie in Brittany Pierce's face. But, Brittany just bites on her bottom lip and shakes her head. "What about Quinn? Or are all jocks and their girls off limits?" She rolls her eyes and tugs at her shirt when she realizes some ice when down between her boobs.

"We're not _their_ girls." Brittany defends, offended by the assumption. Santana looks up from the mess that is her outfit. "At least_ I'm_ not." She shrugs and reaches forward to pick a piece of slush stuck to Santana's shoulder.

"Tell that to Finn Hudson." Santana huffs and gives up on looking fabulous and puts her hair up in a ponytail. Brittany drops her hand and looks for Santana's eyes that are too busy trying to find where else this slushie got itself. "He thinks you're his." She adds, only to establish why she'd suggested that the football players here think they have dibs on the school's cheerleaders.

"Well, I'm not." Brittany reminds her. She'd already told Santana that she could never be with Finn Hudson or anyone like him.

"Do you happen to have something I can change into?" Santana asks, changing the subject. It's not that she even realizes she is changing it; she just doesn't want to stand in sticky, wet, cold clothes any longer. Brittany smiles softly and nods.

The rest of the school day, Santana feels like she is trapped in gym class. The only clothes Brittany had to offer her were some Knox City High School Pantherette shorts and a 'Property of Knox' t-shirt. Thankfully, Santana had kept her aunt's tennis shoes in her own gym locker because her leather boots just did not do the outfit any favors.

She meets Brittany at her locker after school as promised and agrees to hang out for the afternoon. Seeing as Brittany has cheer practice though, Santana decides she can keep herself busy by doing some homework in the stands like she normally does. But seeing as it's oddly cold outside, Santana forgoes sitting in the stands while she waits for Brittany to finish with practice. In Boston, fifty degrees outside in winter is practically considered a sunny day in June. In Texas, fifty degrees feels like living in a freezer.

She walks through the halls that have become familiar to her over the past few months. The flyers on the bulletin boards are shiny and eye catching, but of nothing that really interests her. It's mostly lists and sign-up sheets for clubs that are in dire need of new members or faculty advisors. Her thoughts are interrupted by the sound of music faintly playing from down the hall. Intrigued, she follows the noise until she comes up to an otherwise empty classroom.

Santana spots Tina, one of Quinn's friends, in what appears to be the school's choir room. She's singing and is accompanying herself on the piano. Santana listens, remembering the times with Uncle Roger when he'd play his guitar and she'd sing. She hasn't really sung much since Uncle Roger passed away. Not so much because it reminds her of him and the fact that he's not here anymore, it does and yes it's sad, but she hasn't so much had any reason to sing. Sure, she has sung a few songs in the shower and in the house when her mom wasn't home. But, she hasn't sung in a long while.

She kind of misses it. Uncle Roger told her that songs were ways to say things when words couldn't and she has always believed that. Most of her playlists on her iPod are 'feelings mixes' for when she has no way of verbally expressing everything that is going on inside of her.

The music stops and she realizes that she has been caught spying. Tina nervously smiles, waves and shifts in her spot on the piano bench. Santana nods and pushes herself away from the door frame she had been leaning against. Her tennis shoes shuffle and squeak against the floor as she makes her way into the room.

"What's crackin' girl Chang?" Santana asks, grabbing a plastic chair from across the room and pulls it closer towards the piano. Tina's head jerks back and she sends Santana a questioning glare. "What? That's me being friendly." She explains.

"Has anyone ever told you that you're not very good at friendly?" Tina asks as Santana makes her way into the room. Santana is taken aback at the girl's straight forwardness, but it's something she can appreciate at the same time. So, she smirks and gives a nod. "I'm only saying, I mean, you're kind of rude. And you're extremely closed off and slightly uptight." Santana sighs loudly and takes a seat on one of the plastic chairs closest to the piano.

"Why does everyone keep saying that?" She wonders aloud with a roll of her eyes. "I am _not_ uptight. Bitchy and unfriendly, yes. But uptight?" Santana repeats the word that has been tossed at her more times than not since her arrival in Knox. Tina nervously lets out a tiny, airy laugh through her nose as she watches the way Santana pulls out her nail file and goes to town.

"I'm sure you can't be all bad." Tina comments and turns her attention to her music once more. "I mean," She shrugs her shoulders. "If Brittany Pierce likes you, then there's gotta be something there."

"Thanks?" Santana replies with uncertainty. "So, you're like, a musician or something?" She wonders and motions towards the piano with her nail file.

"I dabble." Tina tells her as her fingers stroke a few keys.

"Well, you sounded pretty good to me." Santana comments and nods towards the piano. "Do you write your own stuff?"

"Sometimes." Tina replies and taps a few keys, the sound echoes off of the walls in the room.

"Have you ever done that open mic night at Holly's?"

"I've always wanted to, but, I'm too nervous. What if I suck?" Tina shares her insecurity of not being up to par for the folk of Knox.

"I just told you that you were good. Isn't that enough motivation?" Santana laughs, wondering how someone who obviously has talent can feel like they could fail.

"That's what Mike says." She sighs. It takes a few seconds for Santana to remember that Tina's Mike is the same Mike that runs crazy on the football field. She can't believe that there is actually a guy in this school who is actually relatively normal. For a football player anyway.

"You and Mike, how does that work?" Santana asks and receives a perplexed look in return. "I mean, he's, like, this big start football player and you're…" She twists her lips, not exactly sure how to say what she means without sounding horribly offensive.

"A geek?" Tina finishes her question and she shrugs with a nod, figuring it's better for this girl to call herself names than for her to do so. "I don't know." Tina hums out, once again letting her fingers dance across the piano keys so effortlessly. "We went to nursery school, elementary and middle school together. We were always sat together because of alphabetical order." She laughs and Santana has to grin at that because it is kind of funny that they have pretty much the same last name but are of no relation. "Then, one day in high school it was like the mist was lifted I guess."

"The mist?" Santana arches an eyebrow.

"I think a lot of times we don't see the things that are right in front of us. Like, we know it's there, but we're afraid if we acknowledge if, it might be taken away from us." Tina tells her as she thumbs through her music sheets. "But, some things are worth the risk. Like, from eighth grade up until the middle of freshman year I faked having a stutter. I was shy and self conscious. I didn't want to be the center of attention or have the spotlight on me. It's weird because now that I'm dating a football player and I'm kind of thrust into it all, but it's worth it." She smiles at the thought of her boyfriend and how they came to be. "One day, Mike heard me practicing here in the choir room. I didn't know he was there. Finally he made himself known and he told me I was really talented. He also asked me why I was so shy because he thought I was too beautiful to walk in the shadows. I stopped stuttering after that and we have been together since sophomore year. Turned out, even though I was afraid of being in the sun, someone thought I was amazing. I took the chance at being myself and it turns out that the only thing I should have been afraid of was missing out on something incredible." She smiles and turns to Santana who appears deep in thought. "Aren't there things out there that make you want to take a leap into the sunlight?" Santana purses her lips and wonders if there would ever be something worth it all. But, before she can wrack her brain for something, her private time with Tina is interrupted.

"There you are." Brittany says from the doorway with a smile on her face. She's flushed from the cold and from her practice. Santana smiles back, happy to be taken away from the quest to find an answer she can't find. "Hey, Tina." Brittany waves as she walks into the room.

"Hey." Tina waves back and gathers her music to put it away in her bag.

"You ready to go?" Brittany asks, turning her attention back to Santana.

"Oh," She breathes out and glances over at Tina who is already getting up from the piano. "Yeah, sure." She grabs her bag and sets it on her shoulder. Before she leaves with Brittany she turns back towards Tina and offers a genuine smile. "You really _are_ good. You should consider Holly's." She suggests. Tina nods appreciatively and the silence offers their goodbyes for them.

On the way home, Santana explains in further detail what had gotten her sent to the Principal's office. It's then that Brittany admits to that paper the teacher read actually came from her. Santana smiles, momentarily silenced by this piece of information and Brittany then says 'thanks' for defending her work. It seems more often than not, since her arrival in Knox, Brittany has been the only one to surprise her and in the good kind of ways. It's actually like Brittany herself is a surprise.

Brittany suggests they hang out at Aunt Linda's, because her mom is having one of her many town meetings at their house. Of course, Santana does not argue this option because she wants to stay as far away from Mayor Pierce as she can. Especially when she's on a power high during a meeting about school costs or whatever it is they discuss.

They take over the couch, which is easy because Aunt Linda is preparing for a night out with some of her girlfriends. Apparently, bingo night is really rockin' on Friday nights when there is no football game going on. Santana figures she'll just take her word for it. While she is getting the lists of what she cannot do while in the house alone, Brittany is channel surfing trying to find a movie they can get lost in. She nearly squeals and drops the remote in her hand, which quickly gets Santana's attention.

"The Vow." Brittany whispers and points to the screen. A trailer for the new Nicholas Sparks esque book turned movie plays on screen, inevitably sucking Brittany into all of its predictable storyline and ending glory. "I cannot wait to see that. Did you read the book?" She asks after the commercial ends and Santana raises her eyebrows and shakes her head. "Oh my God, it was so sad. I think I cried for eleven days straight after." Santana isn't sure if she's ever felt that much while reading a book. She doesn't even feel feelings that much in real life.

"It's just make believe." She explains, trying to ensure that the next time her friend reads a relatively sad book she won't resort to tears.

"It was based on a true story." Brittany defends, as though she knows the real people involved. Santana can't help but chuckle and holds her hands up in defeat.

The next fifteen minutes Brittany spends explaining the gist of the book, using the actors as the characters so that Santana can follow the story. Hearing how enthralled Brittany is about the story, Aunt Linda stands near, listening intently to how she explains it. She laughs when Santana laughs at the cute things, though she is sure her niece is laughing at it because it's silly and corny.

"What's so wrong with make believe anyway? Make believe is great because it's made up. Like, in movies there's rarely an unhappy ending. Television shows, sometimes the sad or the bad are really just ways to get to a bigger and better story." Brittany finally takes a moment to take a breath. Santana, not prepared for questions being thrown her way, sits there still trying to wrap her head around the synopsis of the book she'll never read. "I mean, yeah, it was super sad that Rachel McAdams lost her memory and couldn't remember her life and love she shared with Channing Tatum. But, the story didn't stop there. They wound up getting together in the end." She smiles and looks over Santana's shoulder, realizing that Aunt Linda had been listening the entire time.

"Yeah, but she also never regained her memory." Santana reminds her and tosses her aunt a look like she's got it all figured out. "All those little moments, forgotten forever."

"Well, what about all the new moments?" Brittany challenges innocently. "She winds up finding her way back to him. It's like… like friends who wind up dating. They still have a history and little moments, but, now there are new moments." Aunt Linda clears her throat and goes back to getting ready for an evening out. Brittany's eyes drop to the space between them, desperate to find an argument to prove to Santana that anything is possible. "A laugh they've known for forever is suddenly sexy. A touch of their finger tip sends a shock."

"Name _one_ movie where friends getting together works out. No drama, just clean and cut." Santana challenges. Brittany twists her lips and her eyes flicker up as if checking the front of her mind for the answer. "Exactly, there's none that exist. Something always goes wrong, even if they are meant to be." She points out. Before Brittany can counter that with another idea, Aunt Linda comes back into the living room and Santana sighs, just waiting for her aunt to share her opinion.

"You know, I didn't go out with your Uncle Roger right away and we were friends first. Well, he was friends with your dad." Aunt Linda comments. "He kept asking me out, but I was skeptical. He was this big football player and every girl in school wanted him."

"How'd he get you to go out with him?" Brittany wonders.

"Well, I had agreed on _one_ date because he was relentless. He took me to go see a showing of 'Say Anything…' down at the drive-in." She smiles remembering that night all over again. "He'd found out through your father that it was my favorite movie."

"_So_," Santana looks from her aunt to Brittany who is enamored with the story. "He won you over by taking you to go see your favorite eighties movie?"

"Oh ,no. It was the next day." Aunt Linda chuckles, shakes her head and looks away towards the television. "He stood out on the lawn," She points towards the front of the house. "Holding a boom-box over his head playing 'Invisible Touch' by Genesis."

"Isn't the song from that movie 'In Your Eyes'?" Santana points out with confusion.

"Yeah, and that's what I told him." Aunt Linda laughs. "He said that, 'Invisible Touch' was playing in his truck when he first saw me and changed his life. To this day, whenever that song comes on, I remember him standing out there with his long hair, holding a boom-box."

"That is _so_ corny." Santana lets out in small disappointment.

"Maybe." Aunt Linda beams down at her niece. "But, it worked."

"_I_ think it's romantic." Brittany says in a dreamy voice, loving the ending to this little story. Santana rolls her eyes and sighs loudly, not at all surprised.

"Well, I'm off." Aunt Linda tells them with a wave and grabs her bag. "I shouldn't be home late." The girls send her off with goodbyes and are soon left to their own devices.

"Hey!" Brittany shouts when Santana grabs the remote from her hand.

"No more Lifetime!" Santana yells back, in a playful manner of course and tugs her hand away when Brittany goes to grab the remote back.

"You love Lifetime." Brittany tells her, reminding her friend of the marathon they'd watched just last week.

"I loathe Lifetime." She scoffs, offended at such an accusation. Brittany cheers when she finally gets a hand on the remote and tries to pry it out of Santana's.

"Come on, gimme." Brittany pleads and pouts her lips. Santana, never one to deny that pout anything, groans and releases the remote.

"_Fine_." She sighs in defeat, watching Brittany's fingers dance along the buttons on the remote control. Santana has a thought and for once, she goes with it. "How is it that you work on cars every day but, your hands are so soft?" Santana asks as she grabs and inspects Brittany's hand in her own. Taken a bit by surprise at the feeling of Santana's fingers touching her skin, it takes a moment for Brittany to come up with a response.

"It's called _lotion_." Brittany replies with her own brand of sarcasm. Santana playfully rolls her eyes.

"Yeah." She bites on her bottom lip and gives Brittany a questioning stare. "Well, you do it good." Brittany smirks, unsure of how to take that.

"Yours are just as soft." Brittany comments and turns their hands around so she can give Santana's hand a once over.

"Girls who like girls appreciate the silky touch of a smooth, slender lady hand." She purrs as she wriggles her fingers. "These are our most readily available tools, so we gotta keep 'em pillow soft." She playfully winks and then unceremoniously pulls her hand away.

"When'd you know?" Brittany asks, seemingly out of the blue and lets her own now empty hand fall to her lap. Santana tilts her head and furrows her brow. "That you were gay." Brittany clarifies and Santana mouths 'oh' as she drops her gaze to the space that separates them.

"Umm," Santana clears her throat. "I think somewhere deep down I always kinda knew." She admits and her eyes flicker up to gauge Brittany's reaction. To her surprise, there isn't much of a reaction. "I think it was easier for me to accept it when my parents got divorced. I guess that's one thing I can thank them for." She chuckles sadly. "The more me and Puck went out and did our thing, the more random hookups I had with girls."

"How many girls?" Brittany inquires, but instead of responding Santana just gives her a smirk that tells her she is not going to get that answer. "So, your parents are okay with it?" Brittany picks another question.

"No." Santana says. "They… they actually don't know. I mean, I never told them." She explains. "I mean, it's not like I've kept it from them. I just hate the idea of having to 'come out'. Ya know? Why do I have to come up with this big speech about why I love girls the way I'm suppose to feel about boys?"

"I think people, especially parents, expect an explanation for why their kids love anyone. Regardless if it's a boy or a girl." Brittany offers with a shrug.

"That would be in a perfect world." Santana muses softly.

"Besides," Brittany continues. "I think it's the person. The one you're 'supposed' to love. I don't think it should be gay or straight or whatever. I think that there's this one person that, regardless of sexuality, that we're supposed to fall in love with. It could be a stranger we haven't met yet or, it could be someone we've known for forever."

"Well, now that's an impossibility that we've already discussed." Santana laughs and shakes her head.

"How's that?" Brittany pushes, clearly wanting some more of Santana's ways of the world knowledge.

"People who have known one another for a long time trying to get together does _not _work out." She explains with a finality that makes it seem as though she has been preaching it for hours on end now.

"Says who?" She's not surprised. Brittany has this way of keeping a conversation going. She smirks at that because Brittany can always keep her on her toe, that's for sure.

"Says Dawson's Creek." Santana decides on with a firm nod. When Brittany tilts her head and looks confused, she knows something interesting her way comes.

"Joey and Pacey got together." Brittany says with a bit of uncertainty.

"But, that's not how the story started." Santana points out.

"What are you talking about? Joey and Pacey were always supposed to be together." Brittany defends and Santana arches an eyebrow.

"No. Dawson and Joey were always the 'star-crossed lovers' and 'soul mates'." Santana explains. "I mean, the first two seasons were all 'will they or won't they?'"

"Hmm, I guess I was always rooting for Joey and Pacey since the beginning. They both kind of felt sorry for themselves." Brittany explains with a shrug of her shoulders. "When they were together though, they never felt sorry for each other which I think is what they had both thought they wanted. But, they didn't want to be with someone who felt sorry for them. They wanted to be with someone who made them forget their troubles. The person who made them feel like a better person without even having to try." She looks down at the couch cushion she's sitting on and tucks her foot under her leg. "To me, that's a soul mate. Being there for someone, without even knowing how, why or when." She carefully explains. Santana grins and Brittany looks away feeling self conscious under her stare. "What?" Brittany asks, watching the way Santana's fingers twirl her dark hair out of the corner of her eye.

"Nothing, it's just that... when I look at you, when I'm with you I feel like I did when I was a kid." Santana tells her, eyes boring into the blonde's trying to see her worlds play within those deep blues.

"You're still a kid." The cheerleader chuckles and pokes the other girl's dimple on her cheek with her finger.

"You know what I mean." Santana swats away her hand. "I feel like... nothing is really important except being with you and that... this miserable, stinkin' world doesn't exist. I'm a nicer person when I'm with you." She admits quietly, unable to control the nervous laugh that escapes her lips when all Brittany does is grin. "Why is that?" She questions, tilting her head to the side letting it gently rest against the back of the couch in her aunt's living room. Brittany shrugs her shoulders as she picks at the little bits of frayed denim on her jeans.

"_Maybe_ because when we're together, we're unstoppable." Brittany jokes, her eyes widening with amusement and her smile widens. She receives a hearty chuckle from Santana, who lowers her eyes for a moment, only to lift them and gaze at the cheerleader through her eyelashes. "I don't know." She shakes her head, sighs out and brings her hand up behind Santana's shoulder and massages it gently. "What I do know, is that, I think you're the most awesomest girl I've ever known. Maybe you don't let it show, at least not to everyone else, but that's what I think makes you even more awesome." Santana half smiles, enamored by the sweetness of Brittany's words and the way her voice sounds. "Maybe it's selfish, but, I kind of like that I get to see how incredible you are," She shrugs. "Makes me feel special." Santana looks away and down at her lap.

"I'm not as awesome as you think, Britt." Santana sighs out. "I'm _not _the same Santana Lopez you knew."

"Says who?"

"Says everyone. Says me. Says all the shit I've done that got me sent to this hell hole." She explains with a huff. "My parents, aunt, the judge… they all think sending me here was going to turn me into this perfect person. Like throwing me into the middle of nowhere is going to change me into the fucking girl next door. Well, it's not. I know how the world works and I'm fine with it." She looks off into the distance and nods to herself as if assuring herself of something. "As soon as I'm done here, I'm gonna be goin' back home and if I'm lucky get the hell outta there too. Then again, with my luck, I'll be trapped there forever like I'm trapped _here_ now." Brittany shakes her head and slumps into her seat.

"This isn't about you being someone else." Brittany blurts out in frustration. "It's about you being someone better." She turns in her spot to face Santana and stare her dead in the eyes. "You're so headstrong about being _you_, but, _who the hell are you_?" She challenges in exasperation and Santana is taken aback.

"You…" Santana swallows hard giving her some time to think of her words. "You seriously have no idea what kind of week I've had. So, please spare me." She waves her hand in the air and turns her attention back to the television they haven't even been watching.

"No." Brittany tells her sternly and grabs the remote to shut the television off. Santana turns towards her in confused shock. "Stop shutting me out." She demands as she jams the remote onto the couch cushion.

"I'm _not_ shutting you out, Brittany." Santana defends with frustration.

"You are." Brittany nearly shouts back at her. Silence slips between them, both letting out sighs of the tired song and dance they've been doing for the past couple of months since Santana's arrival. "Just when I think you're opening up to me, you take ten steps back and put this fence up."

"I've already told you so much more than I have ever told anyone." Santana assures her, still grasping to that bit of armor that she knows it around her even if Brittany can see it and has been clawing at.

"You know, sometimes I catch a glimpse of the girl I once knew and then other times all I see is someone _pretending_ to _not_ be her. Maybe that's the problem. Maybe you're just so afraid to admit that you might actually like it here and that you're not as bitter or against the world as you claim to be." She waves her hands in the air in emphasis and exhaustion. "Maybe, _just maybe_, you're afraid to actually enjoy yourself because then you might have something to lose. If you don't care, then you don't get hurt. Well, that's not life. You're only half living, just going through the motions. What's the fun in that? You just... you've gotta be open." Santana tilts her head and watches an array of emotions run over Brittany's face. "It's like...you've locked this door and you hid the key somewhere, and you can't remember where you put it." With those last words hanging in the air, Brittany walks away and out of the house.

Santana is dumbfounded. There were rarely times in their childhood where she and Brittany argued about anything and there even less times when Brittany yelled at her. In fact, she's pretty sure this would mark the first time her friend has ever raised her voice at anyone. As much as she feels like she should probably go after her, Santana decides against it. It's mostly due to the fact that she is kind of glued to the couch with shock and a tad bit of fear.

But a greater feeling takes her over. She's angry. Who the hell does Brittany think she is? She doesn't know Santana, not the way she used to. She's different; they are both different. Santana is sure that if she got up and went to Brittany right now, she would most likely say things that she will later regret. So, instead of marching over to the Pierce's and setting Brittany straight, she settles for her own form of therapy.

Curiosity gets the best of her and she finds herself looking through Aunt Linda's desk, in search of an iPod or mix tape or anything. She comes across what looks to be the first iPod ever invented. Luckily, it turns on and is on full charge. She brings it to her room, grabs her own headphone and sits cross legged on her bed.

There, right where it's supposed to be, is 'Invisible Touch' by Genesis on Aunt Linda's iPod. She takes a deep breath, plugs her ear buds into her ears and presses play. The music makes the rest of the house feel silent. Almost like she is in a movie montage where the music tells the story rather than the crappy dialogue that is written. As she listens to the words, which are kind of good, she moves from her bed to walk around the house.

She looks out to the front lawn when she gets to the living room and smirks at imagining Uncle Roger standing out on the lawn holding a boom-box over his head. Even before he got with Aunt Linda he was whipped. She thinks back to the conversation she had with Quinn about love and how she is blind. Obviously Aunt Linda had been blind, Uncle Roger was right in front of her face and it took so long for her to finally open her eyes and take a chance. Santana realizes that the only people she believes ever had a true love were her aunt and uncle, and look where that got them.

Towards the middle of the song, she's standing in the kitchen and wonders if it's as cold as it was this afternoon. She opens the back screen door and pokes a hand out. It's not so bad, not warmer, but it's also not any colder. She chances a step outside until she is standing on the small deck that Uncle Roger had put together himself. It's not much, but it's enough for the backyard they have. When the song ends, she hits the back button to start it all over again.

A light from her right catches her attention and she spots Brittany walking out to her own backyard. She has a small toolbox in her hand that she sets to the ground beside something big with a sheet over it. Santana's fingers tap to the beat of the song as she watches Brittany pull the sheet back, exposing some sort of car part that she's never seen before. She steps towards the end of the porch and leans her arms on the wood, just watching from a far.

The light from the Pierce's backyard mixes in with the moonlight and it makes it look as though Brittany is standing in a mist of glitter and white smoke. She figures it's from the heat and cold that is tonight's current Texas temperature. As she watches her work her tools tighten and loosen bolts, she wonders if she should have just told Brittany about her mother being in rehab. It's not like she won't find out eventually. There's something about Brittany that makes Santana's curtain of armor open, even if only a little. Regardless of these questions and uncertainties, Santana can't help but think how pretty Brittany is when she thinks no one is watching.

* * *

><p>All Saturday, Santana had the intention of going over and offering an apology to Brittany. After a sleepless night of tossing and turning, Santana had come to the conclusion that if she is going to make it through the rest of her time in Texas, she's going to have to stop pushing people away. Especially her friends, even if there is only two of them.<p>

But, each time she plucked up the courage to walk on over to the Pierce house, she retreated back into her room. Everything she thought of saying felt stupid. If anything, Brittany should be the one to apologize. She is the one that yelled and stormed off. Then again, Santana antagonized her by being evasive. Then there's Mrs. Pierce who would surely not be happy about finding Santana at her front door looking for her daughter.

She spent the rest of the afternoon and well into the evening figuring that if Brittany wanted to talk, she knew where to find her. It was Brittany, after all, who left abruptly. But, when that never happened, Santana finally decided to take things into her own hands. She marched up to the Pierce door, took a deep breath and knocked.

Ten minutes later, Santana is hopping out of Aunt Linda's truck and she is immediately greeted by the sound of music blaring from the garage. The large door is wide open, which allows the crooning of some old song pour out into the air and enters any passer buyer's ears. As she walks towards the doors of Pierce Parts and Tires, her mind races through the conversation she'd had with Brittany and why there was even a need for either of them to apologize. It's then that she realizes they don't say 'I'm sorry'.

They've never had to apologize to one another before, so why start now? All Brittany wants is for Santana to trust her and confide in her. Perhaps, to someone like Santana that's asking a lot. But for someone like Brittany it's a given in any kind of relationship, especially friendship. Santana thinks that maybe if she just shows up looking for Brittany, then this will be her opening up again, trying to keep the door open.

Santana leans up against the wide opened garage door, arms loosely crossed over her chest, and she smiles as she watches Brittany gracefully move along to the music playing softly from an old stereo on a work bench. The radio is tuned to some oldies station, probably set by one of the old guys that work at Pierce Parts and Tires. But, even the corny music can't take away from the flawlessness Santana is witnessing.

Brittany dances on, oblivious that she has an audience, with eyes closed and this intensity on her face Santana has seen a few times before. She smirks when the cheerleader spins perfectly, arms stretching out for empty air, but her hands seem to catch onto _something_ that she pulls quickly back into her body. She remembers watching from her bedroom window summers ago, staring on quite like she is now, and wondering how strong the passion was inside of Brittany to make her dance like she does. It's intriguing to say the least, and utterly moving. Santana could watch her dance for hours.

As the song comes to a close, it appears as the dance itself has as well. Santana looks on as Brittany walks over to the table that the radio is on and grabs a towel, dabbing her forehead and neck. When she is certain there is enough silence, Santana makes herself known by applauding the show she's been unknowingly given. Brittany is startled of course, but she barely shows it, only glancing over her shoulder to find the source of the clapping. She smiles warmly, turns her body around and motions with her hand for Santana to come further into the garage.

"Hey." Santana greets, bringing her hands to her sides, awkwardly shoving them into her pockets that can hardly fit her fingers.

"Hi." Brittany's smile only gets wider, her breathe still heavy from her workout.

"Your dad said you'd be here." She explains, pointing over her shoulder towards the open door she's just come from. "I didn't know you'd be, ya know, busy." She says. "I can go if you need…" But she stops talking when Brittany shakes her head and tosses the towel back to the table, walking in the direction of her friend.

"You can stay." Brittany replies softly, placing her hands comfortably on her hips and stares at the girl before her.

"So," Santana bounces on the balls of her feet, eyes flicker around the room of the dirty garage and shrugs her shoulders. "Do you, like, _ever_ work on cars here? Or do you just dance?" They both laugh. Brittany nods her head up and down as she lifts her forearm to her cheek to wipe some excess sweat.

"It's the perfect space to practice." She informs her friend, a playful grin on her lips. "When I'm not busy fixing someone's truck of course." She winks and then glances back over at the radio when a familiar songs chorus comes through the speakers.

"Journey." They say in unison. Giggles pass between them and they nod, obviously both knowing the words to 'Faithfully'.

"So, am I gonna get another show?" Santana asks, and she lowers her head when she feels the heat rush to her face, realizing how cheeky her question actually sounds. But she lifts her eyes back up when she hears the light sound of laughter.

"How 'bout a dance lesson?" Brittany offers, raising one of her perfectly shaped eyebrows and her index finger, beckoning Santana over. Santana gives her a weary smile, but, she holds her hand out and takes a deep breath in, letting it out slowly. "Or… just a dance?" Dark eyes flicker towards the radio when a new song comes on, well, a different song. Of course its super retro, nothing like classic rock in the styling's of Bruce Springsteen. Actually, it's a cover of 'These Arms of Mine', but still considered retro.

"I think that can be arranged." Santana smirks, carefully making her way over towards Brittany and accepting her hand. She laughs, shakes her head and glances down at the space between their bodies, and the way their hands are held in the air. "This is _very _'Dirty Dancing'." She comments, getting a nasally giggle from the other girl.

"Then let's make it a little dirty." Brittany says softly catching Santana off guard.

Brittany steps forward, pressing her hips to Santana's and wraps her arm firmly around her waist to ensure close proximity. The shorter girl's breathe catches, but it's subtle enough to go unnoticed, and her hands come up to rest on the blonde's forearms gently. She looks at Brittany, a soft smile on her lips and a curious sparkle in both sets of eyes as the song on the radio echoes in the otherwise empty garage.

Brittany leads, swaying their bodies from side to side, getting Santana to follow her motions easily. Santana's hand slowly glides up Brittany's arm, the one that is holding her close, while the other finds its place on her hip. She grins with an airy giggle when Brittany lifts her free hand to swipe some of her dark hair from her shoulder and to her back, letting her fingers linger on the skin by her neck.

"I used to watch you dance." Santana admits, her voice just above a whisper and her eyes fall to glance at the space that no longer exists between their bodies. She tries to fight the smile on her face, but she loses that battle, and bashfully lifts her head exposing her expression. Brittany smirks in response, nods slightly, and lets her fingers trail down to lightly press her hand to the skin just above Santana's top.

"I know." Brittany tells her, her eyes gazing upon all of the features on Santana's face before meeting her dark browns once more.

The hand against Santana's chest gently pushes and she allows herself to be guided, bending backwards, feeling safe that she won't fall with the aid of Brittany's hand securely at the small of her back. Her fingers trace down the length of Santana's body as she arches her back, her front on display for blue eyes. She gasps when she feels Brittany's hand pull their hips closer together as she slowly lifts herself upright, instantly meeting those seemingly tortured blues and her lips part with puffs of air escaping and entering.

Brittany's hand comes up to Santana's dark hair, and she runs her fingers through the soft like silk locks until she is lightly gripping the back of her neck. They continue to move with ease, legs between legs and hands becoming adventurous over one another's body. A tanned hand finds the hem of a soaked with sweat t-shirt, her fingers twist the material into a knot and she tugs on the fabric making her knuckles rub up against slick skin.

"Tell me something?" Brittany breathes out, her thumb and middle finger rubbing at the pressure points at the back of Santana's neck. Her brown eyes half roll in the back of her head at the mixture of sensations running through her body, but she still manages to nod at the question.

"Anything." She replies almost immediately, fighting against the weight of her eyelids to keep eye contact with Brittany.

"Did you think of me?" The cheerleader inquires in a quiet voice, tilting her head to the side as she watches her hand move from the back of the other girl's neck and to her shoulder. When she looks back to Santana's face, she recognizes the way her lips move in the shape of questions and she nervously bites her bottom lip. She embarrassingly chuckles at herself, shakes her head, all the while continuing to move their bodies around the small space that's become their dance floor. "Did you forget me?" She rewords, hope obviously laced in her voice and Santana pulls her head back a bit to get a good look at Brittany's face. Santana shakes her head, her eyebrows knit and unknit and she licks her lips.

"I don't think I_ could_ forget you." Santana laughs out softly, finally getting a relieved half smile from Brittany, who dips her head bashfully. "You were the best part about Texas." She muses as her fingers lightly graze the skin she's met just below the sweaty t-shirt at Brittany's waist and she leans her face forward. "You _still_ are." She clarifies in a hushed tone, her eyes bore into the blonde's who nervously breaks the deep eye contact and crinkles her nose. Slowly, Brittany brings their dancing to a halt but continues to keep Santana's body held tightly to hers and she lifts her gaze back up.

"So are you." Brittany whispers, audibly and visibly gulping, her focus flickering from brown eyes to luscious parted lips. She somehow finds one of Santana's hands and grips it loosely with her own, guiding them up to her chest and Santana's eyes widen.

"Your _heart_ is_ racing_." She croaks out in surprise and all Brittany offers her is a nod and a tiny smile, a barely there 'yeah' creeps from her lips. Brittany clears her throat and shakes her head to rid herself of her sudden anxiety.

"I'm nervous." Brittany admits, flattening her hand to the back of Santana's that is still pressed to her chest, bumping with the quick beats of her heart.

"Wh-why?" Santana asks, her voice low and husky and eyes dart between those shimmering blues. Brittany half smiles, turns serious for a moment, only to smile again.

"Because," Brittany begins, adjusting her hold at the small of Santana's back, shifting her feet from side to side momentarily. "I'm gonna kiss you." She confesses.

Santana is rendered speechless, unable to find the power to think of words let alone say them even if they came to her. The song on the radio slowly fades away, eventually a new one takes over but it's merely background noise. There's a part of her that wants to end the waiting, the anticipation of what is to come, pulling apart at every bit of her. That same part wants so desperately to move to the tips of her toes, grab Brittany by the neck and pull her into a kiss.

But, she doesn't. Instead, she stands stock still, only able to stare back at the girl who has just said _she's_ going to kiss _her_. Something stutters in her chest and the air gets caught in her throat as she watches Brittany's head tilt to the side and tongue pokes out to moisten her lips. Her eyes instantly fall closed when she feels the puff of air pour through her slightly parted lips and hit her own.

She opens her mouth at the feeling of Brittany's lips taking in her top lip and gently sucking on it. Her tongue barely grazes the blonde's bottom lip, and she feels a hand to come rest at the back of her neck like before. When Brittany separates their lips to tilt her head to the other side, Santana's eyes pop open and the hand still pressed to Brittany's chest pushes.

Her head jerks back and she stares back at Brittany with wide, alarmed eyes. Her eyebrows knit together, her mouth opens and closes as she again tries to find words, but this time to say something else. When Brittany moves forward once more, Santana only steps back and straightens her arm out, to keep her at a distance. Brown eyes flitter around the room as she tries to regain the control over the movement of her legs and function of her brain.

"Santana." Brittany says softly, finally breaking the silent tension that is clearly between them suddenly. Her hand comes up to cover her mouth and her eyes open a bit wider, shaking her own head in realization. "I… I…" She stammers, nervously tucking nonexistent stray hairs behind her ear.

"You… you shouldn't have done that." Santana tells her, looking at the ground by Brittany's feet, obviously avoiding her eyes. She points over her shoulder towards the door of the garage and then runs her fingers through her hair as a distraction. "I… I should go." She says and she is already turning toward the door but Brittany takes a step regardless.

"Wait, don't…" Her shoulders slump and she watches on dejectedly as Santana disappears beyond the big garage door and to her Aunt's truck. "Don't go." Brittany finishes, but her words are only there for her to hear.


	9. Chapter 9

**Would Always Be Kept**

_**June, 2006**_

_Brittany is in her own world, swinging along on the tire swing just on the other side of the South Service Road across from her house. Her hands hold the rope as she lightly sways from side to side and her chin rests on the tire. It's clear to anyone watching her that she is thinking. But it's not just anyone who is watching her, its Santana Lopez._

_Santana carefully walks across the South Service Road, curiously staring on as her friend appears to remain in her own world. She moves slowly across the dirt and gravel, not wanting a repeat of the last time she had startled Brittany, which caused the blonde to fall right on her behind. Luckily, Brittany spots her before she can speak._

"_Whatcha doin?" Santana asks as she kicks some pebbles out of her path._

"_Swingin'." Brittany replies easily enough but it's her tone that troubles Santana._

"_Where's Quinn?" Santana wonders when she realizes that it's Sunday and usually Quinn and Brittany's families get together for some kind of barbeque or dinner. Brittany shrugs and looks away. Santana is now even more curious. Her friend is never exactly one to keep things to herself and she most certainly is not someone who stays upset by choice. So, she pushes onward. "What's up Britt-Britt?" She steps towards the swing and pokes her friend in the arm to get her attention._

"_Probably kissing Finn Hudson." Brittany mutters and Santana is sure she heard wrong. Her face screws up and she shakes her head, almost certain that she has momentarily started hearing things._

"_What?" Santana asks, completely dumbfounded if what Brittany speaks is the truth._

"_The other day Quinn went to a boy girl party." Brittany starts and Santana isn't sure she wants to hear the story. But she remains quiet and waits for Brittany to continue. "I wasn't invited because the other kids think I'm weird." Santana's belly hurts at this, because Brittany isn't weird at all. If anything, those other and stupid kids are weird for not wanting her around. She makes a mental note to get back at these kids when she gets older and bigger. "Well, that's what my mom said when she heard from Mrs. Fabray that Quinn got invited to her very first girl boy party." Reset mental note to add Mrs. Pierce to the list. "Anyway, Quinn said they were playing games at the party and I figured it was a regular board game like Go Fish." _

_Santana knows full well that the kids back home in Boston stopped playing board games and Go Fish at parties now too. Instead, they play games where there's a bottle to spin for a kiss and seven minutes behind a closed door with the opposite sex. By the look on Brittany's face, not only has she never gotten to spin a bottle or have one land on her, but she's never been stuck in a small broom closet with a boy for seven minutes. _

_Santana considers Brittany damn lucky. She had the unfortunate luck to get trapped in a closet with Matt Rutherford at her first boy girl party. One minute and thirty seconds and one sloppy kiss later and Santana had pushed that door wide open. She couldn't get out of that closet fast enough._

_But, she can understand the sadness in Brittany's tone. In movies and television, people refer to these gatherings of adolescents a 'rite of passage'. Santana would like to rephrase that term and refer to it as 'uncomfortable and forced'. It sort of reminded her of a smile. Like the smiles people give because their parents tell them too. Regardless, it's evident that her friend Brittany is a little jealous that Quinn got her first kiss._

"_And now I'll be the last one to get my very first kiss." Brittany whines with a pout and Santana wonders if there is even a way to remedy this. She jams her hands into her pockets and twists her body from side to side as though she is stretching. She looks up when she hears Brittany's feet scuffle against the dirt and rocks on the ground. "Have you gotten your first kiss?" Brittany asks, suddenly remembering that she might not be the only kiss virgin present._

"_It's not as awesome as everyone makes it out to be." Santana assures her after she nods an affirmative to the question. But her words do nothing to alleviate the distress Brittany is feeling in her preteen heart. "Actually, it's kinda gross." She adds as she scrunches her nose when she remembers the way Matt Rutherford's saliva strung between his braces when she finally pulled away._

"_The movies make it look awesome." Brittany comments with a pout._

_Santana's eyes fall to the ground where she kicks a few rocks and pebbles around because Brittany does have a point. The movies always make kissing look so romantic and nice. She comes to the conclusion that her mom has been right all these years in saying 'don't believe everything you see in the movies'. _

_The first time she heard that she figured it was just because she had just seen Peter Pan and was convinced that if she thought enough happy thoughts she could fly. Of course it would seem plausible to a seven year old that anything is possible. Santana spent hours in her room concentrating super hard on good thoughts, but would always stay grounded, never taking flight. When her mother found her upset after the many failed attempts she had to sit her daughter down and explain that a lot of times, movies are just make believe._

_So, with that thought in mind, pretty much anything from that point forward Santana took as entertainment and never anything of possibility. But even with the reality to her mother's words, Santana always felt and hoped that somewhere beneath the fantasy of it all, there was some truth to the wonderful lives that her favorite characters had on screen. With that bit of hope, Santana decided that this situation should be no different. Brittany's dream of a very first kiss, like the ones in the movies, should come true much like seven year old Santana's dream to fly like Peter and Wendy._

"_I have an idea." Santana says and she holds out her pinky for Brittany to grasp with her own pinky. "I pinky promise that by next summer I'll kiss you if you haven't been kissed yet." Brittany tilts her head to the side and eyes her friend up with a curious, yet relieved look. For a moment, she hesitates, but eventually her pinky grabs a hold of Santana's. _

"_You promise." Brittany asks. Santana shakes her head and smiles._

"_No, Britt." She tells her. "I __**pinky**__ promise." They squeeze their pinkies together, ensuring the promise is locked in, and then loosen them into a more comfortable grip._

"_Are girls allowed to kiss?" Brittany wonders aloud after a few moments. Santana's furrows her brow and shoots her friend a quizzical stare._

"_Of course girls can kiss." She assures her friend in a surprised tone. "You __**do**__ know what a lesbian is, right?" She laughs out and bumps Brittany's shoulder with her own. "Besides, it's not like __**we're**__ lesbians. Don't you watch MTV? Those girls on those shows are always kissing each other."_

_Brittany shrugs her shoulders and nods, figuring her friend is right. She thinks how silly she is for even asking if it is okay for two girls to kiss each other. Even if it wasn't though, she knows that she wouldn't mind kissing Santana a bit. In fact, she wonders if she can manage to make it to this time next year so that they can carry out this pinky promised kiss._

* * *

><p><strong>You Got To Lose to Know How to Win<strong>

_**December, 2011/January, 2012**_

Santana found it hard to sleep. She tossed and turned. When she was done doing that, she did a little more. A few times she got out of bed and walked to her window to look at the bedroom across the way. The curtains were drawn every time though. Even if they were open, she's not sure it would have made a difference. It's not like she would have gone over there anyway.

But, what made her sleep even more restless than the events that had transpired in the garage of Pierce Parts and Tires, was that today is Sunday. Sunday in Knox is when everyone in town gets together for church. Everyone includes the blonde whose advances she denied.

"Santana." Aunt Linda's voice comes booming into her room before she even does. "Oh." She is taken aback as she opens the door and finds her niece sitting up in her bed, back against the wall. "You're already up." Santana nods as her aunt stares at her for a second before vanishing back into the hallway. "Better start getting ready." Linda calls back, already in the kitchen.

With a huff and a few kicks with her feet to get the covers off of her, Santana pushes herself up and out of bed. She glances around the room that has become her room a few months ago and wonders when if it will ever feel like hers. Sure, her stuff is in it and she sleeps in it. But, it still feels strange. Before she heads towards the door to start making herself up for the day, she sends a glance out her window towards the window across the way. The curtains are pulled back and this pang in her chest that was so heavy last night returns. There is no doubt she will be seeing Brittany again, that is for certain. She just figured she could put it off for a few days or weeks or maybe forever.

As she walks down the hallway to the smell of bacon and eggs wafting their way from the kitchen, she wonders what all these feelings are inside of her. She feels bad and guilty and wrong. But, she knows she was right. Letting Brittany kiss her was a bad idea. Just as bad of an idea was kissing her back. At least, she reasons, she stopped it before it got out of hand.

Brittany should not just going around kissing people like that, especially when those people are Santana Lopez. Sure her lips were soft and it was kind of nice, as short as it was, but it shouldn't have happened. At least, that's what Santana keeps telling herself. As much as she reminds herself that pulling back and walking away was the right thing to do, there's something tugging at her that makes her feel bad for doing so. Even if she believes it was the right thing to do.

"Eat." Aunt Linda tells her as she places a plate of eggs, bacon and toast down in front of her.

Santana comes to, realizing that she had walked all the way from her room to the kitchen in a haze of thought. Thinking is exhausting and more than that, what she is thinking about is tiring too. Aunt Linda moves around the kitchen, eating as she cleans up all the pans and dishes she used to make breakfast. A nice distraction for a few minutes.

"You're thinking." Aunt Linda says to break the silence that has clouded over them since she sat down at the table.

"What?" Santana asks.

"You're moving your food around." Linda points towards her niece's plate, taking note of the eggs perfectly separated from the bread and bacon. "Do you want to talk about it?" She asks but Santana only shifts in her seat and brings her focus back down to her food.

"Uh, no." She shakes her head and sips her orange juice. "It's nothing." Aunt Linda takes a bite of her food and studies the girl across from her.

"I called your brother this morning." Aunt Linda continues, but Santana doesn't give her much of a reaction. "He's back in Boston."

"Oh, yeah?" Santana lets out without interest and finally takes a bite of her dinner. "Did you remind him that he doesn't have to take out the screens in the windows, because he never put them back in?" She obnoxiously blurts out.

"Santana, you know your mom is doing a good thing, right?" She wonders if her niece understands that going into rehab is actually a step in the right direction. "I get this is a difficult…"

"_No_!" Santana shouts and slams her fists down on the table making the dishes shake taking Linda by surprise. "Stop defending her." She yells, frustration taking its toll on her.

"I'm not."

"Yes you are! You _and_ Miss Pillsbury keep telling me that this is hard, but she's doing it to get better. You can't play the victim when you're the one hurting yourself."

"You're one to talk." Aunt Linda argues.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Santana scoffs.

"Santana, what do you want? You want someone to feel bad for you? Fine." Linda raises her hands as though she's giving up. "Go ahead, feel bad for yourself because I'm sure as hell ain't gonna do it."

Santana watches her aunt go about eating her breakfast like they weren't just having a serious conversation. She studies the way Aunt Linda can let things, like all the crap Santana has been throwing her way, just roll off of her shoulders. If only Santana could not give a shit about the things her parents stack up on her shoulders. She wonders if there's something about living here, in this town or one like it, that makes people so easy going. People like her aunt and Quinn, who haven't exactly had it easy and who have had bad things happen to them, still seem happy and content somewhere inside. Then there are people like Brittany who exude this happiness that only seems attainable to those who live in a fairytale world. Santana is jealous of that ability.

These thoughts only bring her back to Brittany and the short kiss they shared the night before. Her shoulders slump and she becomes completely disinterested in continuing a debate with her aunt on the current status of her family. She stabs a clump of scrambled egg with her fork and stares at it for a few seconds, sighing as she does so. Her eyes flicker up to Aunt Linda, who is ignoring her, probably figuring she is being all huffy about the conversation she cut short. Understanding that she isn't getting any attention through way of sound, she takes a chance and starts a new conversation.

"Is it possible to do something you think is right but it winds up being wrong?" She starts and this peaks Aunt Linda's interest nearly instantly. "But, like, there's no way you could be wrong because you know someone will get hurt and that makes you right. But, somehow, someone still gets hurt." Santana ponders away out loud all the while looking down at her food and Aunt Linda listens quietly, wondering if her niece is asking these questions to herself rather than towards her.

When Santana looks up at her, Linda realizes these are the questions of her seemingly confused and stubborn niece who is desperate for some sort of answer and not the angry girl who was dropped off on her doorstep. Aunt Linda twists her lips in thought and breathes out slowly through her nose. The dining room is silent for a few seconds as she gathers up answers to Santana's somewhat troubled mind.

"I think that sometimes what seems to be the wrong thing to do is actually the right thing to do." She philosophizes. "That's the hardest part about growing up. We makes mistakes and wrong choices, but then again, if we didn't we wouldn't wind up being the people we are today. Every day we run into choices. It's what we do in the face of those 'forks in the road' that determine our fate." Santana is now wondering if she should reconsider asking her aunt for advice in the future. It feels like a riddle or an excerpt from the Bible and its exhausting trying to decipher. "Perhaps a thing to remember is," Aunt Linda continues. "It's not always about right or wrong, but more about how you feel. It's about the moment, consequences be damned." Santana is grateful for her aunt's ability to not point certain things out. It reminds her how much of a Lopez that Linda really is and it is very much appreciated. Aunt Linda sometimes knows when not to ask questions.

Santana isn't sure if she is happy to not be asked certain questions because she doesn't have the answers or if it is the question she fears most. Either way, she can count on Aunt Linda to read her and understand that sometimes unasked questions are easier to answer if they are posed in specific ways.

They reach the church at about a quarter to and the outside is already slimming down with the town's folk heading inside. Santana wonders if she stalled enough at home to avoid a confrontation she is not yet ready for. With Aunt Linda telling her in a hushed tone to 'hurry up', Santana glances around the sidewalk and the steps just before the doors of the building and is about to let out a sigh of relief.

"Do you know how bad it looks to have the mayor saunter in at the last minute?" It's the sound of Mrs. Pierce's voice that sounds a mix of Texan girl and snobby woman, and it catches both the Lopez women's attention.

"I said I was sorry." Brittany mutters in a huff trying to push her mother's hands away from her hair and jacket. Aunt Linda smirks at her niece but Santana is unaware as she is too busy trying to walk away while getting a look at Brittany. They catch one another's eyes and Santana can see it in those blue eyes that Brittany got as much sleep as she did the night before.

"Shh, come on girls." Mr. Pierce shushes them and motions for them to take the small steps up to the door where Linda and Santana are standing. Santana looks away as Brittany steps up behind her and awkwardly smiles at Mr. Pierce. "Ahh, see." He jokes and points to their neighbors. "Just a slow start out on the service road." He chuckles and Linda offers him a friendly nod and smile. "After you." He grabs the door from Linda and ushers all the ladies into the building.

The rest of the town's congregation is still talking so they have snuck in at the perfect moment. While Aunt Linda and the Pierce's look for a place to sit, Santana is desperate to find a spot that only seats two, or one. She's sure her aunt can handle the Pierce parents better than she can, but that's the least of her worries. Just as the sweat is starting to accumulate between her breasts from an uncomfortable situation, Santana's eyes land on other familiar ones.

"Hey, I'm gonna go sit with Quinn." She tells her aunt in a low voice, her eyes flickering over to Brittany for less than a second who is watching her curiously. Aunt Linda nods and glances around for a spot for herself, momentarily happy for the hour of peace and quiet she'll get from being at least a few feet away from the stressful teenage girl angst she never signed up for but loves regardless.

"Come on Brittany." Mrs. Pierce says as she grabs at her daughter's arm and tugs her towards a pew in the front.

Santana watches on as she follows slowly behind the Pierce women and inches into the pew a few feet behind them where Quinn is waiting for her. She and Quinn share a smile as way of greeting before her eyes travel down the rows of Knox City people until landing on a certain someone. Of course, her leering only lasts so long, because every few moments Brittany looks back and catches her staring. Clearly Santana, as stealth as she is, tears her attention away from and turns each time to say something to Quinn. This only lasts a certain amount of time until the blonde sitting beside her starts getting intrigued by her friend's current state.

"What is wrong with you today?" Quinn whispers between hymns and excerpts, and bumps her shoulder into Santana's.

"_What_?" Santana throws back incredulously and a little loud for church, as she receives a few glares. "Nothing, I'm just…" She looks around, over at the back of Brittany's head for a second and clears her throat. "I'm in church." She explains with a wave of her hand and Quinn rolls her eyes and shakes her head, pretty much giving a 'whatever' without having to actually say it.

An hour and fifteen minutes later and the place is clearing out. Santana shoves the book back into the slot in the pew in front of her and sighs. Just one less Sunday she thinks right before she looks up and sees Brittany being scolded in a hush tone by her mother a few seats ahead. Her brow furrows and her nose crinkles as she watches the way Brittany is listening but is clearly offended by whatever it is her mother is saying.

"Is she nasty to everyone?" Santana wonders aloud and Quinn lets out a snort when she follows her line of vision.

"If she wasn't I think we'd all believe she was overtaken by a pod person." She replies without much interest in the topic of Annie Pierce, mayor of Knox City.

"Even with her own daughter?" Santana asks and pushes herself up from the pew to allow Quinn and the rest of the Fabray's to fall out into the aisle as well.

Without getting a response or a last look, Santana is rushed out onto the sidewalk by Quinn and her parents to Aunt Linda who is impatiently waiting for her. Linda waves to the Fabray's but motions for Santana to hurry up. The international signal for 'I've got shit to do'.

"I'll call you later." Quinn calls out when Santana gives her a final wave and an eye roll before she goes to meet her aunt.

"Hey, Quinn." Brittany's voice catches Quinn's attention and she turns with a smile. It falters for a moment when she locks eyes with the mayor, but they both are quick to look away from one another.

"Hey, Britt." She greets in return.

"Where's Santana?" Brittany wonders, giving the area a quick look around.

"You just missed her." Quinn points over to where Miss Linda's truck is already driving down the road and further away from them. She can tell by the look on the other girl's face that she is more than just disappointed about not catching her outside of church. "Everything alright?" She asks.

"Oh, yeah." Brittany waves off the idea that there can be anything wrong. She even offers a not very believable chuckle and playful eye roll. "I just, ya know, I've gotta go." She points over her shoulder and awkwardly takes a step back. "Umm… yeah, so I'll talk to ya later."

"Okay." Quinn watches as Brittany scurries away and she wonders not about what just happened, but what _is_ happening.

Back in Aunt Linda's truck, cruising its way down the South Service Road, Santana stares out the passenger side window deep in thought. She wishes she had zero thought, or at least another thought. But really, there's only one thing running through her mind and it's bordering on annoying.

"I'm gonna drop you off and head into town." Aunt Linda says as she is about to pull into her driveway and Santana nods, thankful to be taken out of her own head. "I have a few errands to run. You'll be fine by yourself, right?" She asks and Santana snorts.

"I have 911 on speed dial Aunt Lee." She mocks her aunt as she leans down to grab her purse she'd placed on the ground by her feet.

In true fashion, Aunt Linda waits until she is actually inside the house before she even begins to pull out of the drive way. Just before she sees the backlights vanish beyond the bushes between the houses' driveways, she hears two different sets of horns beep quickly, letting her know that the Pierce's are home as well. She lets the screen door close and shuts the main door behind her with a sigh.

She's barely changed out of her church clothes when she hears a knock at the front door. Her breath catches in her throat and she nervously sends a glance out across the yard to Brittany's window. It's silly because it's not as if she can tell just by looking at a window whether or not it is Brittany at the front door. When she hears the knock again, she pulls her shirt over her head and tugs it down before making her way down the hallway and to the front door.

"Santana Lopez?" A guy in a brown outfit asks after she opens the door.

"That's me." Santana leans against the doorframe and crosses her arm, giving the truck parked just out of the driveway a good look.

"I've got a few packages for you." He tells her as he pulls a clipboard out from under his arm and holds it out for her. "I just need you to sign here." He points towards a line with an ex with his pen. With a confused look, Santana accepts the pen and signs her name anyway and she moves to the side as the guy carries the boxes into her aunt's house. He waves her off with a nod of the head when she hands her the last of the packages.

Santana watches the delivery guy run back to his truck as the sky opens up and rain comes pouring down. She closes the door with her foot and settles the last box down by the rest of them. All together there are five packages and all of them are from the same address. Without having to open them, she knows what they are. Maybe not exactly, but she knows they are the same kinds of gifts her father sends her any year that he can't see her.

She pokes one of the boxes with the toe of her sneaker and crosses her arms over her chest. Considering the shape and size of the box, she can safely assume that it is a pair of designer shoes. This means if there are shoes in one box, that the chances of one of the other four boxes holding a designer handbag are pretty high. For the first time in her life, she isn't itching to tear the box apart. For the first time in her life that she can remember, she could honestly care less about what is inside of those boxes.

But, of course, her curiosity gets the best of her. Not because she wants to see if he picked out good stuff, she already knows he did, but because she wonders if she can convert her dad's love by how much money he spent on her. She chews on her thumbnail for a moment, eyeing the boxes up from smallest to biggest before she goes to grab a knife from the kitchen to cut them open.

With the knife in her hands, she twists her lips as she decides which box is going to be the lucky first one opened. Figuring bigger is better, she starts with the smallest one and slits through the tape. She was right about this box, its shoes. They're three hundred dollar high heeled boots that she never asked for. She puts them back in the box and grabs another.

She goes through them, box by box, until she's left on the floor in front of the door in the middle of open boxes and over a thousand dollars of merchandise. The boots her father got her don't hug her and say 'I'm proud of you'. The purse doesn't kiss her forehead and let her know she's a good daughter. The clothes don't invite her over for family dinners and ask her to babysit her baby sister because she should have her older sister in her life. None of these things say 'I love you'.

There isn't even a card.

Santana grows angrier with each glance at the gifts her father sent her for Christmas. All they do is remind her that she's in Texas and not in Boston and that her mother is in a rehabilitation center for substance abuse and that her father's first instinct to 'help' her was by sending her away. She hates these presents and everything they stand for. Even more so, she hates them for what they don't stand for. And even worse, she hates him.

A short laugh escapes her lips and she rolls her eyes at herself. Her vision has gone blurry because she's crying. She doesn't like crying very much. Not when she thinks about her father especially. She pushes herself up from the floor, as though the gravity from a standing position will disintegrate her tears instantly. But it doesn't work. She's still crying.

Santana yells at herself for letting this get to her. She's mad at herself for letting him disappoint her yet again. For some reason around the holiday's or on her birthday or on a Saturday, she always seems to give him the benefit of the doubt.

She pulls the inside door open and pushes the screen door with force. Boots fly from her hands and out onto the front of the house, into the dirt and gravel of the driveway. A designer bag gets flung through the air and bounces onto the pebbles and into a puddle. Clothes dance in the wind as they get thrown out of the house and into the dirt.

Santana follows all of the articles she has just tossed from her aunt's house and to the front yard, grabbing the knife first. The tears streaming down her cheeks melt away as the rain hits her face, allowing her to successfully mask her sadness with the anger pouring out of her. She slips on the small patch of grass in front of the house and curses before she gets back up and stalks over to the boots.

She kneels down and grabs one of the, now ruined, leather boots and stabs the knife into it. Slicing it down the side isn't as smooth as she thought it would be, but it only fuels her fire. The tears are still forming and coming out, but she ignores them as she shouts '_I hate you'_ against the wind that slaps her face.

The knife drops and she can feel the rain hit the palms of her hands. Her head falls and her chin bounces against her chest as sob rack through her body, no longer able to find strength to yell at inanimate objects. She's cold, but she's too tired to get up and she knows that she should probably clean all of this up before Aunt Linda gets home. But, all she can do is cry.

Out of the corner of her blurred vision, she sees a foot kick the knife away from her and just as quick two strong arms are wrapping themselves around her. Her body is pulled into an embrace and when her head hits the body of the person, she sees the wet blonde hair and knows who the arms belong to. All of her thoughts from earlier in the day are the least of her worries and she completely forgets that she hasn't spoken to Brittany since last night. Instead, she's wondering why she can't just wallow in her misery alone.

"What are you doing here?" Santana asks in a loud voice, trying to hide her face from Brittany.

"I…" Brittany remains still, keeping the other girl close to her. "The lights went out in my house. I was comin' here to see if you guys were out too." She explains as she takes a look around at what used to be Linda Lopez's front yard. Brittany is in a state of shock at the scene she has stumbled upon and it hurts her heart. "Let's go inside." She tells Santana and squeezes her closer.

"Go home Brittany." Santana chokes out, trying to pull away, but Brittany doesn't budge.

"No." And with that stern but gentle 'no', Brittany pulls them both up to their feet and leads them into the house. "Come on, use your feet." She says softly when they reach the steps to Aunt Linda's porch.

The water drips from their bodies and their clothes and onto the wooden floor of the house. Other than that, it's quiet and it's dark. Brittany steadies Santana before she ventures off into the kitchen to grab a flashlight from one of the drawers. When she returns Santana is looking down at the boxes all of her gifts had come in. Brittany isn't sure if she's looking at them or she is simply not looking at Brittany.

They make their way down the hall and into the bathroom which is the darkest room in the house because it has no windows. Brittany of course forgets the electricity is out and flips the switch, which does nothing. She sighs and sets the flashlight down until it sort of illuminates the bathroom with just enough light.

"Take a shower." She tells Santana as she reaches in to turn the water on. "I'll get you some dry clothes." Santana doesn't respond, but it doesn't matter, Brittany leaves before she can really put together what is going on.

Twenty minutes later, Santana steps out of the bathroom with the flashlight in her hand. She wonders if she's alone. It would be rather fitting, she thinks, considering the massive meltdown she had. She shines the flashlight to the right wondering if Aunt Linda or Brittany or both are sitting in the living room. Or either or one or neither could be waiting for her in her bedroom.

"I cleaned up all that stuff." Brittany's voice comes from the left and she flashes the light to shine on her. "I didn't know what you want to do with it, so, I tossed everything in a plastic bag." Santana sees her motion towards her bedroom which she assumes is where the bag is and she nods. Brittany watches Santana walk towards her and then into her room. "I got some candles from my house when I grabbed dry clothes. I don't know where your aunt keeps 'em here." She explains the dimly lit room. "I figured you'd want something more than just a flashlight that seems to need new batteries." She points to the flashlight in Santana's hands, but the other girl isn't even looking at her.

Santana nods a few times as she places the flashlight down onto the bedside table behind the head of her bed. She pushes her blankets away from the sheet so she can get under them. Brittany stares on as she slinks into the bed, letting her back rest against the wall and her feet hang off the side of the bed. She takes a step towards the bed and sits down by the foot of the bed unsure of what to say.

So, she doesn't say anything and they sit in silence. Brittany has never met someone who shut everyone out so much. She's never been in the presence of someone who is so desperate to want but too proud to ask. But, it's gotten to the point with Brittany where she wants the ask part of the exchange. She's been putting herself out there so much only to be pushed away. So, when Santana doesn't say anything for a good amount of time, Brittany decides to leave.

Before she can get too far away, a hand grabs her wrist and she is stopped. She looks down at Santana's small hand and fingers wrapped around her wrist. Her eyes find those dark ones that are so sad and full of uncertainty. She can tell, however, through their tortured haze that they are asking her to stay. So, she does just that.

"Are you okay?" Brittany asks as she turns to face her friend on the bed.

It's a chance a question. She knows she'll get one of three possible answers. A shrug followed by a grunt which will mean 'no' but that Santana isn't going to tell her either way. Or Santana will tell her 'I don't want to talk about it'. Then there's the third option and the one that Brittany wants. It's the one where Santana will wipe her eyes, maybe sniffle a bit, and tell her exactly how she feels.

"No." Santana whimpers.

Brittany's heart breaks. It is apparent that she is not going to be receiving the first of possible outcomes to her question, but she holds her breath, waiting for more. Santana's head hands as her fingers play against each other, much like the words in her head that wage war with the way it feels in her chest.

"What's wrong?" Again, Brittany takes a leap and hopes that beside her, Santana will leap too. Santana lifts her head and looks up to meet Brittany's eyes, showing her friend the tears rolling down her cheeks.

"My mom's an alcoholic." Santana reveals without much feeling. She shrugs her shoulders, the corners of her mouth turn upside down and looks away. "I knew it too. I knew it and I pretended like it wasn't anything. I mean, a lot of people drink after a day of work and on the weekends." She explains and Brittany uncomfortably shifts beside the bed. "I don't want to end up like her, all alone and drunk." Santana chokes out a sob and her faces falls into her hands. Brittany frowns and moves to take a seat on the bed next to her.

"You're a kid." Brittany reminds her and Santana sadly chuckles.

"I'm no kid, Brittany." She says with disappointment.

"You're only seventeen. Your parents are the ones who are supposed to make sure you don't do stupid things. You're not supposed to keep an eye on them." Brittany explains what she meant by the term 'kid'.

"Well, they missed a lot then." She looks up at her friend as though challenging her to say different. "The first time I tried ecstasy I didn't come home. I passed out in the back of Puck's mom's car that he stole that night. He was so fucked up he got a ride home from someone else. I woke up in a parking lot with some cop knocking on the window." Brittany closes her mouth to keep herself from saying something foolish. "When I finally got home the next night, my mom just asked me how school was. It was a Sunday and I was fourteen."

"I..." Brittany wants to say something, but nothing very good comes to mind.

"I don't expect you to say anything." Santana sighs after a few long seconds of silence. She knows that sometimes people talk just to talk, not looking for answers, she never thought she was one of those people until now. "There's nothing _to_ say." She shrugs her shoulders.

Santana wipes her face and sniffles, trying her best to compose herself. She clears her throat and shifts in her spot on the bed and looks down at Brittany's hand on her leg. She's been here in Knox City for over four months now and she realizes she has barely asked Brittany a thing about herself that hasn't already been given to her.

"Do you like it here?" Santana asks.

"In your bedroom?" Brittany replies and arches an eyebrow as she looks over at her friend. Santana smirks and rolls her eyes. Brittany chuckles and shrugs her shoulders as she sighs. "I don't know anything else."

"Yeah, but regardless, do you like it here?" Santana repeats in a different fashion. "Like, do you wanna live here forever?"

"I wanna be wherever I'm happy." Brittany tells her. "My _mom_ wants me to go to the University of Texas and be a cheerleader there like she was."

"_But_…" Santana drawls out when she realizes there is a 'but' coming.

"I'm not _just _a cheerleader." She laments. "I like fixing cars and music and reading."

"And dancing." Santana adds and gets a smile in return.

"_And_ dancing." Brittany agrees with a nod and watches the way her fingers tug at the thin blanket covering Santana's leg. "Sometimes I think she sees what everyone else sees when they look at me." Brittany's head hangs while Santana twists her lips, wondering exactly what it is Brittany means.

"What does everyone else see?" She asks in a gentle voice.

"The dumb blonde cheerleader, who peaks in high school, gets into college based on extracurricular and who my parents are but not smarts." Brittany explains. "I'm not an idiot. I know what people think of me."

Santana studies Brittany's face and the way those eyes seem pained. She wonders if that pain is always there, just carefully hidden behind a bright smile of hope, honesty and innocence. It is a pain she can connect with. But, she doesn't understand why Brittany would be someone who feels this kind of pain. The kind of pain where you are a book and everyone judges you by the look of your cover.

"You know that I'm not one of those people." Santana says as she places her hand to cover Brittany's. "When we were little, I thought you were the smartest person I had ever met." She smiles when Brittany smiles at her. "And I still do. Maybe they just don't see what I see. But, I'm kind of okay with that."

"Oh yeah?"

"As far as I'm concerned," Santana starts as she laces her fingers through Brittany's. "Everyone else is shit out of luck because you're gonna run the world one day." She winks when she finally gets a grin and a legitimate giggle from her friend.

"That would be ideal." Brittany muses, entertaining the idea of a place that she had reign over. Santana grins and sniffles away the last of her tears. She clears her throat and pulls her hand out from Brittany's grasp.

"So, University of Texas?" She asks, realizing she has not really given much thought to where she's going after high school. Even though Miss Pillsbury drops the 'C' bomb at mostly every meeting they have. Somehow, Santana manages to avoid the subject each time.

"That's the plan." Brittany claps her hands and squeezes them between her thighs as she nods her head.

"You just said that's your mother's plan." Santana reminds her. "What is it that _you_ wanna do?" Brittany considers this for a second. The topic of college and where she's going has never been really a discussion but more or less a decision made by her mother. She figured college was college and it didn't really matter where she went. "Like, if you could go anywhere, where would you go and why?"

"I don't know." Brittany answers honestly. "I'd like to dance." She replies with a shrug, feeling as though it's a silly pipe dream that will never amount to anything. "Or maybe even do something with fixin' up cars." She smiles at this admission.

"_So_, why don't you apply to schools that have that?" Santana suggests. "I mean, don't you want to do something _you_ want. You're the one who's gonna be stuck with whatever it is you choose. Not the Mayor of Knox City." She bumps her shoulder into Brittany's. "Besides, Texas isn't the only place in the country."

Brittany smiles and turns to look at Santana, who shifts under her stare. Blue eyes flicker from browns to lips and Santana feels something stutter in her chest. All of those things that had been clouding her mind earlier in the day come rushing back and the need to retreat aches in her bones. Brittany licks her lips and bites on the bottom one as she looks from Santana's eyes to her lips.

Santana swallows hard as she tries to bring the words forming in her head to her mouth. But it's the sound of the front door swinging open and Aunt Linda's voice booming through the house that pulls both Brittany and Santana out of their haze. Santana clears her throat and shuffles in her spot on the bed, finally able to tear her eyes from those devastatingly entrancing blues.

"You should go." Santana says in a low voice, unable to look over in Brittany's direction because she knows she will see an expression she can't bear. "_Please_." She whispers the plea, but Brittany doesn't have time to argue because Aunt Linda has already opened the door and is shining a flashlight on the two of them.

"_There_ you are." Linda sighs with relief. "Did I interrupt something?" She asks when she notices the strange look on the faces of the two girls. Brittany shuffles to the edge of the bed and pushes herself up, leaving Santana by herself against the wall looking around as if trying to think of something clever to spit to her aunt.

"We were just keepin' each other company through the storm." Brittany explains, stepping towards the doorway that Linda is standing in front of. "I, uh, I'm gonna go." She motions with her hands that she wants to slip out of the room and Linda moves out of the way, watching the girl next door leave in haste. "Bye Miss Linda."

"Bye Britt." Aunt Linda calls after her in a bewildered tone and turns back to her niece once she loses sight of the blonde.

"The lights went out." Santana points out the obvious in an attempt to avoid any sort of questioning her aunt had been thinking up.

"_Okay_." Aunt Linda drawls out and eyes Santana up. "Well, I'm gonna go call and see if they can get out here to give us power." In seconds, Santana is by herself again.

Her hands come up to cover her face and she lets out a sigh. Her old flip phone buzzes against the table by the head of her bed and she groans. When she holds it out in front of her, she sees that it is a text message from Quinn so she flips it open.

_**Quinn:**__ coffee?_

She contemplates the offer for a moment, wondering if she wants to journey back into town. The lights go back on, which proves for a promising evening of game shows with Aunt Linda, and she figures it's probably best for her to get out and do something other than think. She goes over to her closet and grabs the converse her aunt gave her that she has pretty much dubbed her own and slips them on as she heads out her bedroom door.

_**Santana: **__holly's…leavin now_

"Hey, Aunt Lee." Santana calls out as she pulls over a light jacket and zips it up. "I'm goin' to meet Quinn in town." She says, finally coming up to her aunt who is in the kitchen wrestling with something.

"'Kay." Linda nods with a smile. "Fill the tank up while you're out." She says with a pause in motion and moves to grab her purse on the counter. "Here." She tosses her niece a few bucks. "You should think about gettin' a job, I'm not made outta money." Linda points out as she waves Santana away.

Twenty minutes later and one round of iced coffee, Santana and Quinn are sitting on the patio of Holly's Daze Café. Quinn has been going on about the excitement around town with the state championship game coming up and how awesome it is that it's going to be played at one of the universities nearby. Santana listens on semi interested in this life of football and state titles, all the while wondering if she'd be just like Quinn if she had grown up in Knox City.

Her attention is stolen by something across the street and Quinn notices right away that Santana is no longer listening to her. She sips on her iced coffee, wondering how long it will take for Santana to realize that Quinn is privy to her fallen interest. And then Santana looks back at her, clears her throat, and then turns her focus back to where she'd been looking.

"What do you think of her?" Santana asks with curiosity. Quinn's brow furrows for a moment, confused at where this conversation has gone, until she follows her friends line of vision. Brittany is a little ways down the street getting into the passenger side of her mother's fire engine red Mustang. "I mean, if you were someone random in our school or the town and saw Brittany Pierce, what would you think?" Her conversation from earlier about how Brittany believes people perceive her echoes in her mind and she's intrigued at how Quinn could relay the vision of one Brittany Pierce to the common Knox City citizen.

"That's kind of a bogus question. I already know her." Quinn replies, lost at how she is supposed to answer a question she can't possibly comprehend.

"Humor me." Santana glares at her and sips her iced coffee drink. Quinn's eyebrows raise and she considers different ways in which she can respond.

"I've questioned her sanity before." She blurts out and she rolls her eyes at the look Santana shoots her. "I mean, it's fairly obvious why. She smiles, even when it's rainy, and I don't mean literally. The world could implode, legit riots breaking out, I mean full out fires in trash bins and broken bottles. But there would be Brittany, skipping along handing out lollipops or pixie Styx promising a better tomorrow." Quinn smiles at the image playing in her head of how totally true this description of Brittany is. "She sees the world differently, that's for sure. But," She pauses for a moment and looks down at her cup in thought. "She's not dumb. Everyone_ thinks_ she's a moron. The typical blonde cheerleader who lives in her own world and maybe she does. But, I mean, it seems like a great fucking place to be all things considered. And the best part about where her mind lives is that's where her heart is too, and it's so big." Santana half smiles and nods at this statement. "Her heart is _so _big. Her world too, and if she had it her way, everyone would live there. She's happy and joyful and she practically explodes confetti when she laughs."

"Geez, Q." Santana shifts in her seat and her laugh is mixed in with a huff. "You tryin' to tell me something here?" She wriggles her eyebrows suggestively, but Quinn doesn't budge, she just smirks back.

"It's in her eyes, ya know." Quinn watches her words fall into Santana and the way her eyes fall to her hand that is holding her cup. "The way she looks at you." She relays and in a softer voice as she leans forward to rest her arms comfortably on the table which gets Santana's attention on her. "She likes you." Quinn finally says, making Santana's eyes widen and her mouth opens in shock.

"_What_?" Santana coughs out, shakes her head and furrows her brow.

"You heard me." Quinn replies pointedly, with a quirk of her eyebrow. "She _totally_ likes you." She repeats and sits back comfortably in her chair, smiling proudly at herself. "I can't believe you don't see it."

"You're ridiculous." Santana scoffs and waves her friend off, trying to distract herself by twisting and twirling her iced coffee cup around on the table.

"No," Quinn shakes her head, completely dismissing her friend's denial. "The looks, the smiles…" Her voice trails off and she looks to the side, her face appearing as though she is piecing the puzzle together even further. "_Oh my God_!" She gasps, sitting up abruptly and her hands come to the table. "You _really_ didn't know." She whispers out forcefully, eyes twinkling with delight at her crime solving skills, so to speak. Santana just shakes her head, a nervous laugh coming out and she stares back down at the rings of water her sweating drink leaves on the table.

"Because she doesn't." Santana tries to assure her friend with a stern voice.

"Only she does." Quinn pushes, amazed at how daft someone as smart as Santana can be sometimes. "_So_," She shakes her head from her thoughts and looks up at Santana who eyes her curiously. "What are we gonna do 'bout this?"

"Umm, what?" Santana nearly chokes out, shifting around in her seat uncomfortably. "_We_?" She asks, raising her eyebrow and tilts her head to the side. "_We're_ doing nothing," She tells the blonde. "Brittany's straight. Plus, I don't play that game."

"What game is that?" Quinn asks, glancing around at the Knox City residence passing them by and sips her iced coffee.

"The whole, '_I've only dated boys, but you intrigue me. Be the experiment I try to only ensure my heterosexuality_.'" She explains, leaving Quinn to sit there with wide eyes and her mouth hanging open. "_'Oh, and FYI, I most likely will lead you on for a while'_ game." She nods at the end of her rant and crosses her arms over her chest.

"You're delusional." Quinn finally blurts out, tearing her eyes from Santana and leans back into her chair.

"For serious, I can't tell you how many straight girls I've been with." Santana shakes her head at this fact.

"How many?" Quinn wonders, looking back at the girl sitting across from her.

"No, for real." Santana continues, staring blankly at Quinn. "I can't tell you, far too many to count." The cheerleader chuckles and rolls her eyes as she plays with the straw on her plastic cup.

"Fine." She gives up after receiving a pointed look from Santana. "But, I'm telling you," She raises one of her perfectly shaped eyebrows. "She's definitely into you."

"Would you stop already?" Santana whines as she adjusts in her seat. "Just because two people kiss doesn't mean there's something going on." She clamps her mouth shut as soon as the words leave her lips and her eyes dart up to find Quinn's wide with surprise. Not just at the admission, but that she's right. "I mean…"

"So, you _kissed_ her?" Quinn asks in a whisper and leans more into the table towards Santana who shakes her head and looks down the street to avoid eye contact. When Santana doesn't respond, Quinn smiles to herself and nods as she leans back. "_Oh_." She doesn't need to hear the words, she can tell by her friend's silence how all the kissing went down and it only proves her point. Brittany likes Santana.

The afternoon carries on and both girls do nothing to bring up that topic of conversation again. Santana doesn't because she's content with her thoughts on it being a preposterous idea and even that kiss the night before doesn't prove a thing. Quinn doesn't because she knows what she knows and if she knows anything, it's Santana and Brittany. Maybe it's been a few years, but some things never change.

All the lights to the houses are on as she drives her way down the South Service Road. Aunt Linda has the porch light on for her, as she usually does whenever she goes out at night. As promised, Santana filled the tank up and she even toyed with the idea of getting a job down at the gas pump off of Main Street. But, she figured that was going overboard with the whole southern girl vibe she's been trying on.

She can see from her spot in the truck that Aunt Linda is sitting in front of the television for a re-run of some game show. It's nice to have something to rely on sometimes. Even if it's just old Aunt Linda, hanging out in front of her television drinking tea and eating sherbet.

It's different for her here in Texas than back home. Time is different. Back in Boston at this time of year, everyone is itching for Christmas vacation. Down in Knox City, Texas everyone is anxiously waiting to see if 'our' boys get themselves that State Championship title. It's hard to believe that the holiday she looked forward to as a kid is almost something as a back story to the high school's football team.

Santana wonders how many Christmases it's been that Aunt Linda has spent alone. She thinks maybe it's a good thing that she got sent all the way out here. This year, Aunt Linda won't have to do Christmas alone. Sure, Santana is certain she isn't the best kind of company, but she's sure as shit better than nothing. She goes to grab her purse on the passenger side seat and her iPod fumbles from underneath. It stopped raining a while ago, so, she decides to stay outside for a little more fresh air.

Santana, headphones in her ears, walks to the tire swing to think. She remembers all the things she and Brittany have done together as kids. The memories, stories and most of all the promises, but, as much as all of this reminiscing should bring her joy, she only feels anger. She's mad that she's here, in Texas. She's mad at her parents for fucking up her life because of their own problems and her brother for leaving her to deal with it all alone. She's still mad at Brittany for kissing her. But mostly, she's angry at herself.

As the song playing from her iPod fades out and brings on another, something from the corner of her eye catches her attention. When she looks up, she sees Brittany walking towards her. Her hands are tucked away in the pockets of her Pantherette jacket. Her hair is in a messy bun and she's in sweats with both legs pulled up to her knees. She wishes she could just have alone time, something she's always had at home but never seems to get since she's been in Knox City, Texas.

When Brittany gets close enough, Santana tugs her ear buds from her ears and puts her music on pause. They don't say 'hello' to one another, just offer nods as way of greeting. Brittany pulls a hand from her pocket and reaches out to grip the rope of the tire swing. She pulls at it a few times, making the empty tire swing from side to side and forward and backwards while Santana watches.

"You know," Brittany starts in a slow way. "I kinda thought that, that night when you showed up in my room and told me all that stuff about your life back in Boston that you were sort of promising to be honest with me."

"I haven't lied to you about anything." Santana defends. Brittany tilts her head from side to side and sighs, letting her eyes fall to the ground where she kicks some pebbles away.

"Well, I guess more like you were promising to not push me away." She rephrases and looks back up to Santana's dark brown eyes.

"Promises are like rules." Santana says blandly as she bends down to grab a rock and skips it down the road ahead of them. Brittany whips her head in her friend's direction, her eyes staying on the stone jumping against the gravel for a few more seconds before looking at the other girl's hardened face. The shorter girl shrugs her shoulders and wipes her hands on the back of her skirt. "_Made_ to be broken." She finishes without much of a change in her tone. The blonde's brow furrows and her mouth opens slightly to protest, but instead she turns her head forward and bites her bottom lip.

"When you told me all that stuff before and the other day," Brittany continues on, not even giving Santana the satisfaction of inching under her skin. "I was so proud of you, for being so open, because I could see how much it hurt." Santana's eyes fall to the tire swing as it sways back and forth, but doesn't say anything. "Do you ever wonder what it would be like if it was different?" She asks as she tucks some blonde hair behind her ear and chances a glance out of the corner of her eye at Santana.

"What?" Santana quickly replies, turning her attention to her tall friend with questioning eyes.

"Well, like," Brittany shrugs and tilts her head from side to side, deciding on what words will be right to use. "If your parents were still together and stuff." She finishes, hoping she hasn't stepped over some invisible line of inappropriate or not. Santana's lips part, eyebrows scrunch together as she says the question in her head over and studies the blonde's uncertain demeanor.

"Uh," Santana lets out, shakes her head and looks back at the ground. "I mean, yeah." She nods a few times and shrugs one shoulder. "I wonder what it would be like if my dad didn't walk out on us and get married to a twenty-something and have a kid with her." She sighs out, defeat laced within her voice as she explains her current life. Brittany turns her head a bit to watch the range of emotion flash over her friend's face. "But," She licks her lips and gnaws on the bottom one for a moment before she lets out a long breath. "It isn't different. Is it?" She asks, not in a way that she wants an answer, but because she knows the answer.

"I do." Brittany breathes out as she gives the tire a nice, hefty push and moves out of the way to let it swing freely. "Think about if you never stopped comin' here that is." She explains as she steps side to side as though playing chicken with the tie swing. "I mean, we missed out on a lot of stuff." Brittany looks up and shoots Santana a cheeky grin.

"Like what?" Santana wonders with a small smile of curiosity playing on her lips.

"_Well_," Brittany sings out as she grabs the tire and hops in with ease. "Do you know how many top ten singles on iTunes we haven't danced partied to yet?" Santana laughs at this point her friend makes and she moves her spot to behind Brittany so she can push her on the swing. "I mean, that's math I can't even do."

"If it's a top ten, just multiply that by four because that's how many weeks are in a month." Santana begins to explain as she continues to push the tire swing. "Then multiply _that_ by twelve because that's how many months there are in a year. And then you just multiply that by how many years we haven't seen each other."

"Santana," Brittany sighs and looks over her shoulder with a grin. "You are a show off and that is a hell of a lot of songs." They giggle at one another and Santana forgets her problems in that moment.

Rather than the girl who was sent down to Texas because of problems with the law, she's Santana hanging out with her best friend Brittany. Instead of being the girl whose mom is in rehab, whose brother is selfish and whose dad loves her through money, she's just a girl. And sometimes, in these random moments she has shared with Brittany since her time here, it's a great escape. And sometimes she wonders if it is escape she's in with Brittany, or if that is what reality actually is.

Because suddenly, she is smiling and forgets the bad.

Suddenly, she's happy.

* * *

><p>Having been going to Friday night football games in Texas since she was a girl, Annie Pierce knows just when to go to the bathroom. About ten minutes before halftime the bathrooms are close to desolate, which is ideal when they tend to get rather overcrowded as soon as the horn blows signaling a break in the game. Plus, she doesn't want to miss the halftime show which features her daughter.<p>

So when the Mayor of Knox City enters the bathroom and finds only two of the five stalls taken, she grins victoriously. She closes the door to her own stall and realizes who it is in the neighboring stalls when she hears the voices. She can tell a Knox City High School Pantherette from just a phone call, so, it makes it easy for her to decipher the voices of two cheerleaders from two stalls over.

"I don't know _why_ she keeps giving him the cold shoulder." One girl says in wonder, but there's a slight annoyance in her voice. "I mean, he's been trollin' her since last year. She can't be _that_ stupid." Mayor Pierce can hear the second girl cackle at her friend and she smiles to herself at how even through the gaps in generation, some things will never change in teenagers. "All she does these days is hang out with that new girl and apparently her and Quinn are bff's again." It's in this moment that Mrs. Pierce's body freezes up and she holds her breath.

"_Well_," The second girl starts. "Jen told Jessica that Karofsky told her that that new girl is totally gay. And not like Lindsay Lohan gay for a day. Like, Ellen gay." There's a half of a gasp that turns into a giggle and then the toilets flush, drowning out the sound of laughter. Mrs. Pierce remains still and waits as the other stall doors open.

"_No. Way_." The first cheerleader challenges her friend.

"_Right_? When I heard that I was all, 'that girl is totally _not_ gay'. I mean, have you seen some of her outfits? Don't, like, lesbians where flannel shirts and work on cars?" The other girl muses aloud.

"If that's the case then Pierce is halfway there." The first cheerleader sighs. "I guess it would totally make sense. She's always working at her dad's shop, getting dirty in her monkey suit and she wants nothing to do with the most popular guy in school."

"For sure." She second, and obviously dumber f the two, responds. "Oh my God." She gasps and Annie Pierce braces herself for even more and possibly worse gossip. "You don't think that Quinn and Brittany were getting it on and that's why they stopped being friends?" The first girl huffs.

"Oh, please. Quinn Fabray got knocked up by some low life townie from Carter. So she was definitely not knockin' boots with Brittany. Unless captain of the Pantherettes is hiding something under that short skirt."

They laugh all the way out the door and probably all the way to the field where their team is getting ready. Mrs. Pierce finally lets out her breath, closes her eyes and shakes her head. When she flushes the toilet, she looks at herself in the mirror before she washes her hands. This was unexpected. But more than that, it is unacceptable.

When the mayor returns to the stands she is greeted by the cheers of the fans that are rooting on the dancers and Pantherette cheerleader's half time show. Her eyes scan over the crowd and she wonders how many of these other students drop her daughter's name in a bout of gossip. Not only that, but how many connect Brittany and the 'new girl', who she can only imagine is Santana, together the way those two cheerleaders had in the bathroom.

She makes her way through the packed out with fans bleachers and back to the middle of it all where her husband still is. She finds him easily enough and he smiles at her, oblivious to the world she's just stepped into.

Santana stands alone, off to the side, away from the crowd. The fans swarm to the field. Parents hug each other, players jump onto one another and coaches fist pump in the air. The cheerleaders clap their pompoms together fiercely, jumping up and down with smiles that light up the stadium more than the bright lights do. Some run to their boyfriends, other cheerleaders and random fans.

Her eyes find a blonde ponytail bouncing up and down. She grins, seeing at how excited Brittany is and how amazed her face looks. She wonders how that feeling of winning actually feels. How the adrenaline is coursing through and how the incredibleness of it all radiates in every bit of your being. It must be an indescribable feeling to win.

The Pierce's are busy congratulating Mrs. Hudson, along with the rest of the crowd, on how well her boy Finn played. Everyone telling her how many opportunities he is going to have with an arm like that. Mrs. Hudson, as proud as ever of her boy, looks out to the field and watches on as he celebrates with waving his helmet in the air and pointing to all of this teammates as he jumps up and down on the field. Mrs. Pierce smiles too, knowing full well the feeling of ending a season in a win just before going to the states championship game.

But, as she turns her attention to the field, she is drawn to something else. She finds her daughter, not sharing this joy with her own squad mates or even with a good looking high school football player, but with the girl next door. She's holding onto the metal bar of the chain link fence that separates the stands from the field while Santana leans comfortably over it, between her daughter's hands. She can tell that they are smiling at one another, if her daughter's grin is anything to go by.

Quinn bounces by them as well, giving Brittany a hug and Santana a wave, but she only stays with them for a few seconds. It's when Finn comes over and lifts Brittany up by her waist in a victorious way does she smirk. Brittany squeals and slaps his hands, but the both of them are laughing. Her daughter smiles and gives the Hudson boy a genuine hug. Mrs. Pierce's smile only grows when she sees Santana slink back, away from the fence, and say something to Brittany that looks much like a 'goodbye' or something similar.

* * *

><p>Mrs. Pierce has set her plan into motion. The Hudson's are over for dinner and just as she wanted with Finn and Brittany immediately paired off, seeming to get along perfectly. She smiles to herself as she watches her daughter and the Hudson boy sit closely outside on lawn chairs in front of the fire pit. They are speaking quietly and for intents and purposes, intimately. She honestly can't think anything else can make the night go any better.<p>

That is, until there is a knock at the door.

To much surprise, and for the first time probably ever, Mrs. Pierce is pleased to find Santana standing on her front porch.

"Oh, uh, hi." Santana greets with a fake smile. That topped off with her shifty feet only reminds the mayor of the girl's poor manners, only adding to why she isn't very fond of her. "Is Brittany around?" She asks and moves to the tips of her toes to peer over Mrs. Pierce's shoulder hoping to spot Brittany. Mrs. Pierce matches the phony grin with one of her own and tilts her head to the side.

"Well, she is. But, as you can see," The mayor motions her arm in a smooth line through the air to bring Santana's focus to the living room. "We have guests. I believe she's in the back by the fire, though, she may be busy." Mrs. Pierce adds and steps aside. Santana eyes her suspiciously, but steps inside the home. "I'll lead the way." She announces, quickly stepping in front of Santana to guide her through her home. Mrs. Pierce stops at the sliding back door and points towards the yard. "There they are." She points out in a quiet hopeful voice and she grins when Santana abruptly stops at the glass door and stares on.

They both watch Finn toss his arm over Brittany's shoulder and pull her in to a half of an embrace. The goofy tall boy smiles, says something and nuzzles his face into the side of Brittany's. Santana's jaw drops when she sees Brittany bring her free hand up to the one on her shoulder that belongs to Finn. Not wanting to see anymore, Santana shuts her eyes and shakes her head. She misses the part where Brittany pulls his hand away from her shoulder and nudges him away.

"I… uh… I have to…" Santana stammers and turns away from the door to head back the way she had come from.

"Would you like me to tell her you dropped by?" Mrs. Pierce asks all too sweetly before Santana can get too far. Santana pauses for a moment, thinks, but then shakes her head.

"No. It's not important." And with that, Santana leaves the Pierce residence.

Mayor Pierce waits for the sound of the front door shutting before she turns back to the yard to find her daughter and Finn sitting further apart than before and just laughing at the sky. Even if Brittany isn't going to wind up with Finn Hudson, she feels assured that at least Santana isn't privy to that bit of information.

* * *

><p>"Hey Pierce." Without even looking up, everyone knows that it's Dave Karofsky. He leans his hands onto the bench table and regards each of the table's occupants with a rude glare and a demeaning name. "Lady Lips." He calls Kurt. "Lucy Lui." He refers to Tina as, who shoots her friends a quizzical stare, not quite sure if she is supposed to be offended. "Juno." He smirks at himself at the last dig saved for Quinn who simply rolls her eyes at him. Then he just gives Santana an awkward look while she stares him down before grinning back over at Brittany who watches him in confusion.<p>

"What do you want Dave?" Brittany asks with a cringe as she shifts about in her seat, not sure she actually wants to hear why he has ventured over to their side of the lunch field.

"Wonderin' why you're sittin' over here with these losers when you're supposed to be over there with us." He points his thumb over his shoulder and snickers.

"You _do_ know my boyfriend's on the football team, right?" Tina reminds him, but he ignores her and Kurt comforts her with a light pet on the arm.

"Back off Dave." Brittany waves him away, but he doesn't budge.

"Oh, come on." Karofsky pats her shoulder. "You're just cranky 'cause good old Finny boy wore you out the other night." He stands up proudly and crosses his arms over his chase as he watches the way his words sink into Brittany's brain. Santana's focus turns from Dave to Brittany in surprise and disappointment. Quinn's intrigue turns to alert and brings her attention to Santana.

"What are you talkin' about?" Brittany asks, irritation evident in her tone and she looks down at her lunch to avoid his stare.

"You and Finn, doin' the deed." He explains with enough ease to make the entire table feel uncomfortable.

"We didn't _do_ anything." Brittany assures him and sends a quick look up to Santana before shooting daggers at him through the power of sight.

"That's not what he's been sayin'." Dave leans his hands back down onto the table. "In fact," He whispers. "He's been busy tellin' everyone how you like it too." He moves to brush some hair behind her ear but she bats him away.

"Hey, hey!" Quinn yells out and reaches across to nudge his shoulder so he's not infringing in on Brittany's personal space. "Back off."

"Chill out baby mama." He holds his hands up in defense and chuckles. "I'm only repeating what I heard."

"And obviously what you heard was a flat out _lie_." Quinn hisses.

"Like, when you said you didn't cheat on Finn and that you weren't pregnant with some stranger's bastard?" Dave challenges, making Quinn fall silent. "That kind of lie?"

"_What's your problem_?" Santana chimes in, leaning her elbows onto the table top and glares at the boy standing at the end of their bench.

"Nobody was talkin' to you, bull dyke." He stammers towards the end, which makes Santana laugh and the rest of the group fall into silence as they watch with wide eyes.

"_Original_ and completely wrong." She pushes herself up from her seat and leans her hands down onto the table. "I get that you have some _weird_ obsession with Finn Hudson. I mean, I don't get it. But I get why _you_ are obsessed." She grins and steps back from the table to walk over towards Dave who is trying his best to remain unaffected by her words. "He's the captain of the football team, every guy wants to be him and _every_ girl wants him." She stops when she gets right in front of him, crosses her arms over her chest and smirks. "Every chance you get you say something not even remotely clever towards my home girl Quinn over there." She motions to Quinn who is looking on just like the rest of them. "You're _extremely_ racist. And _don't even_ get me started on the homophobia." She shoots him a knowing look that is only shared between the two of them. "Yet, since I got here all I've seen you do is give girls crap for not wanting to mack it to your boy Finn. I mean, how do you know how 'awesome' he is? Do you _really_ want me to go on?" She gives him a faux empathetic expression and he begins to back away from their table.

"Whatever." He waves her away and speed walks back over to his fellow footballers on the other side of the lunch field. A slow clap from behind catches Santana's attention back to the table and she turns to find Kurt looking between his friends until his hands fall to his lap.

"Hmm, no?" He shrugs his shoulders and goes back to his lunch. "Felt like a slow clap moment."

"That was amazing." Tina says when Santana moves back to her seat across from her. "I don't think I've ever seen anyone put him in his place before." She explains, checking out the rest of the tables responses to this triumph.

"So, you guys just put up with that clown?" Santana huffs, grabs her water bottle and turns to the other kids at the table with her.

"David Karofsky is just _one_ of those guys." Quinn sighs, waving off the question of why Dave does the things he does.

"That's ridiculous." Santana distastefully groans. "He's a grade A asshole."

Before anyone else can comment on Dave Karofsky and his charmless manners the bell rings signaling the end of lunch. Tina and Kurt pair off and wave everyone a farewell as they make their way to their next class together. Quinn gathers her books and tells her friends she will see them later and goes to catch up with Kurt, remembering she has to talk to him about something to do with some family party, leaving Brittany and Santana alone together.

"Thanks." Brittany says quietly. Santana glances up from her books, slightly surprised to hear Brittany say anything considering she'd barely uttered a word while that meathead Karofsky was bothering them.

"Oh." She shakes her head and pulls her books to her chest while she adjusts her bag on her shoulder. "Yeah, it's…" She shrugs, not quite sure what Brittany expects her to say. Standing up to a douche bag isn't something fairly new to Santana Lopez.

"Well, thanks anyway." Brittany reinforces and takes a step closer. "Also," She twists her lips for a moment and looks to Santana's eyes. "Nothing happened between me and Finn." Santana's head jerks back and her brow furrows, feigning disinterest, but fails miserably. "My parents, actually my mom, invited the Hudson's over for dinner. He must have stole some of my dad's beers from the outside cooler and he tried to… but, I told him I wasn't interested." She quickly explains in a rushed breath. "I didn't even know they were comin' over until it was dinner time already."

"It's really none of my business." She forces out and tries to grin just to bear it, but instead she just looks over at the rest of their classmates heading back inside and others coming out for their lunch period.

"Isn't it though?" Brittany counters, quickly regaining Santana's inquisitive eyes on her. She smiles to herself and bounces on the balls of her feet before she moves to spin around.

Brittany is already too far away from her to argue anything of what she just said. Instead, she has events leading up to this moment racing through her mind and the words of a certain friend ringing in her ear. Oh, and she notices how Finn Hudson goes up to Brittany and tries to put his arm around her but gets undeniably brushed off.

Instantly, she has this feeling of having to put another Knox City High School Panther in their place. There's something about Finn Hudson that others think he's untouchable. In truth, he's a dumb jock who is probably going to stay stuck in this small town because once he graduates, if he even does, he is going to be pumping gas over on Main Street. It's a sad fact that poor Finn Hudson is unaware of, but a fact nonetheless.

By the end of the day Santana has given herself a mission. When that last bell rings, she takes her time at her locker, making note to keep an eye out for her target. She smiles and nods when both Quinn and Brittany stop by to see if she wants to get burgers at Carmel's after their practice. Of course she will want something to eat after this. She's always worked up a hearty appetite when she enters into a word to word combat with someone of lesser words. In fact, she's looking forward to the ravenous feeling she will experience later on in the day.

The rest of the students make their way down the corridor and to the stair case to leave school for the day, while the athletes hang around a little longer waiting to go to practice. She wonders how long she'll have before she gets caught or if she will actually get caught. Sometimes though, things are worth getting almost caught for. So after she finishes taking her sweet ass time getting her books ready, she makes her way down towards the Panther locker room and stands outside for a little bit.

She watches a bunch of the guys from the team walk in and out, some in full gear and some just carrying things because they either suck or got hurt. When they start pouring out in longer lengths of time, she figures her moment is now. Without a care, she pushes the door to the boy's locker room open and stalks through the rows of lockers. It would be obvious to any passerby that she is looking for someone, but luckily for Santana Lopez, the place is pretty vacant.

There's a gasp here and there as she marches through, but she ignores them and carries on in her search. Finally, she hears the sound of that laugh she would never forget even if she tried. The voice may have matured over the years, but the owner of said voice has not. He is unaware of her presence as he tugs on his tank top and reaches into his locker for his shoulder pads. Just as he is looking into the bottom of his locker for his mouth guard his locker slams shut and he is stunned to find none other than Santana Lopez standing in front of him. She eyes him up carefully as she leans up against his now closed locker and takes inventory of his dumber than rocks expression and his less than appealing wanna be boy band hair.

"What are you…" He starts but he's cut off when she pushes herself up from his locker and points at him.

"Do not say one word in the next thirty seconds." Santana firmly states and the school's starting quarter back stares on dumbfounded. "Nod so I know you understand." She crosses her arms over her chest when he nods on demand. "Good." She smirks when she sees she has his full attention. "It's been a few solid years since I've visited this rusty hole in a pipe town, but, it's pretty much the same as I left it." She starts, pushes herself further away from the lockers and towards Finn, forcing him to walk backwards. "Minus some tiny, interesting facts." She sends him a fake smile and tilts her head. "Since my return to Knox, I've learned me a few things," She holds out her hand and holds out one finger. "One, cowboy boots are what the folk here consider to be a sensible shoe, two, you's a baby daddy once removed and three, you've got a little not so secret crush on my girl Britt." She brings her hand back down to cross her arms over her chest again. "_Nod_." She warns while she continues to step towards him until his back is against the lockers across from his own. "But, let Auntie Tana fill you up with some knowledge. _I know_ you remember _exactly_ who I am." She gives him a look that tells him she can see right through him. "Your puffed up, marshmallow face is a dead giveaway. You turn a light shade of green and you sweat." She points out. "_It's gross_. And since I can smell the fear radiating off of you, you're gonna do me a solid." Santana grins evilly at him and holds a finger up to make sure he doesn't interrupt. "And before you ask me '_why_', save your breath and settle for the answer 'because I said so'." With one final step towards him she stares into his eyes. "Stay away from Brittany and get your howler monkey buddies to leave Quinn alone. _Believe me_, if you don't, I'll make it so that not only will you not be able to hold a football, but you won't be able to hold your own balls. Get it?" She waits for it to sink in, but only for a second. "Nod." He nods again and she smiles. "Good. Now, make sure to stretch. Wouldn't want you to pull a hammy before the big game next Friday." And with that, Santana walks right out of the boy's locker room, leaving Finn Hudson as still as a statue.

When she walks out no one is the wiser and she is sure Finn is shaking in his Frankenteen size cleats. The afternoon's events definitely put a little more pep in her step as she makes her way over to Miss Pillsbury's office for their weekly meetings. She's not worried about getting in trouble for the little stunt she just pulled because she's sure Finn Hudson isn't about to let anyone know that some girl snuck into the boy's room just to tell him off. Actually, she wouldn't be surprised if he tried to spin it around and make it sound like she showed up in a towel and asked him to take a shower with her. That thought only fuels on her belief that she did something right and that she struck some fear in him, at least for the time being.

Miss Pillsbury is ready for her with pamphlets for colleges when she arrives and practically shoves them into her purse for her. The bad part about this whole meeting with this social worker lady is that if she wants to be 'better' she _has_ to talk to the woman.

"Have you given anymore thought to what it is you want to do after high school?" Miss Pillsbury asks after Santana spends most of the first fifteen minutes of their session skimming through the pamphlets and filing her nails.

"When I was younger I thought I'd run off to Hollywood and be in movies." Santana explains. "I didn't have a lot of friends growing up. I think I put a lot of people off with my straight forward bitchiness." She shrugs. "I was always so happy when summer came because I'd see Brittany and Quinn. They were my only friends really. We used to play all the time. House, on the tire swing outside my aunt's house and any other thing we could dream up." Santana pauses for a moment and glances towards the slightly open window in the office. "When we stopped coming here, I felt like all of those dreams I had as a little girl stayed here with that person I was then."

"And you're different?" Miss Pillsbury inquires curiously to which Santana nods in response. "How so?"

"I don't know what it is exactly, or how to even explain it." Santana sighs and places her nail file back into her purse. "For more than half of my life I thought everything was perfect. My family anyway. And when that wasn't fact anymore I don't know." She shakes her head and looks down to inspect her nails. "These people I thought I knew and loved were strangers to me. Imagine being twelve years old and having everything you've ever known just fall apart in the blink of an eye. I'm not the girl I was... I don't think I know her anymore."

"Since you've been in Knox for a while, do you feel any different?" The social worker questions in a very professional way, but it doesn't stop Santana from giving an immediate response as it used to when they first started.

"I do... I just... I can't explain that either." Santana stammers, unable to put into words the way she has been feeling inside ever since she strolled into this town.

"You said you were friends with Brittany Pierce and Quinn Fabray... now?"

"It's different for them. Nothing changed except maybe their summers." Santana shifts in her chair and looks at Miss Pillsbury. "Well, except Quinn had a baby and Brittany stopped talking to her." She adds as an afterthought.

"I saw them the other day talking." Miss Pillsbury points out and Santana nods at this.

"They talk now." She says. "But, that's just cause of me." She clarifies the reason for the two friends' recent reunion.

"So, maybe you not coming here affected more than you think." Miss Pillsbury tells her and Santana sighs out in a huff at this curious statement.

* * *

><p>It's the night of state championship game. The night where a lot of people from Texas believe heroes are born and the night that changes lives. The horn is blaring signaling the end of the game and the announcer is shouting the winner over the loud speaker. The crowd is roaring away, hooting and hollering at the final score on the board and at the amazing players on and off the field. People are rushing the field and jumping onto players, knocking into the officials and cheerleaders in the excitement of it all.<p>

As Santana stands there, she watches Knox fans; students, parents, teachers, cheerleaders and players hang their heads in defeat. Sure, she figures, it must suck to lose something so big. These players have probably dreamed of winning the State Championships as seniors when they were tots and their daddy's handed them their first pigskin.

Even the girls on the cheerleading squad. Most of their mothers were probably cheering on the men of this town once upon a time. Each little girl, groomed to be a Pantherette and party with their State Champ boyfriends.

But, through the sea of hung heads and the mist of quiet failure pouring from the Knox City stands, Santana notices the other side of the coin. The other team is celebrating their victory. Cheers and shouts echo around the dome and she sees the fans and families and cheerleaders sharing the joy of the players.

Seeing this makes her wonder how that part must feel. Wanting something so bad, tasting it in dreams and then actually getting it. It's got to feel pretty amazing. In a way, she's sort of jealous. Knox City High School came here for something but are leaving empty handed. The other team came here and is taking home pride a victory and a state title. She came here with nothing...

And then her eyes fall to Brittany. She's got her bag already tossed over her shoulder. She appears tired and over this entire night, but she still manages to look breathtaking. Her hands are shoved into the pockets of her cheerleading jacket and her blonde pony sways behind her with every step she takes. Santana realizes, she's never noticed how blue Brittany's eyes are. Like the Texas sky on a clear day; beautiful and seemingly endless.

There's this maturity to them that isn't always there. Those eyes have things to say; only Santana isn't sure she's ready to hear them speak. She looks away before those blue eyes can fully connect to hers and the need to flee takes her over. When that feeling comes on, she doesn't question it, she simply lets her body lead the way.

With the Knox City students, parents and fans spilling out of the stadium and into their trucks and cars, Brittany waves her teammates a farewell and spins around to head to her truck. She tucks her hand into her bag to get her keys, but needs to glance down to search for them when her hand can't find them. Once she gets them in her grasp, she lifts her head up and stops walking when a truck passes by in front of her.

When it's gone she spots her truck and smiles. She's not smiling just because of her truck. No. She's smiling because of the girl standing there beside her powder blue truck, waiting for her. Santana glances up when she hears footsteps close to her, relieved yet nervous to see the girl she had been waiting for.

"You wanna go somewhere with me?" Santana asks. Brittany tugs on the string of her bag and bites on her bottom lip, trying to contain her smile.

"Alright." She nods and hands Santana the keys to her truck. "Take me somewhere."

They don't say much on the ride, but mostly enjoy the comfortable silence they, every now and again, let fall over them. Brittany curiously, but patiently, waits quietly in the passenger seat to see where it is that Santana is taking her. When they pass by their houses, Brittany feels a sense of nostalgia of those times when they were younger and their dads or Roger would take them to the next town.

Sure enough, her memory proves right, and Santana pulls into a small boutique just fifteen minutes out past their houses on the South Service Road. She remembers Miss Linda and Roger taking them to this specific place every couple of weeks during Santana's visit. Her parents were okay with it because Brittany's mother liked the scented candles they had there and sometimes she got cheaper baking tins at the boutique.

"I haven't been here in a while." Santana points out when she tosses Brittany's car in park and smiles. "I thought it'd be fun to look around and see if they still have those 'buy five pieces of crap for fifty cents'." They both giggle as they hop on out of the truck.

Its dark out, but the lights in the empty parking lot are bright. They both point out the weird hours on the door, just like Linda and Roger used to do when they would go at random times at night quite like this one. For some reason or another the owners of this store stayed open until 12:43am. No one ever really knew why, but it was amusing enough to actually see if they closed exactly at that time.

They make their way towards the toy aisle, just as they used to when they were little girls. They grab at a few toy guns and test them out, either declaring them good for cheap or a piece of crap. After the toys, they move to picture frames that they always used to suggest a perfect picture for. Eventually, they separate and wind up walking an aisle apart, but it works out seeing as the aisles are not separated by high shelves. Just stacks of cheap stuff and cheap crap.

"Smell this." Brittany tells her as she holds out a candle. Santana eyes up the candle, unsure of what she is about take a whiff of.

Santana is greeted by a scent that sends her mind into a scramble. She knows this smell. It evokes memories from her childhood, to which she cannot pinpoint precisely. So, she sniffs it again. She closes her eyes this time while she rummages through the cabinets and boxes that have been stored away in the brain of her youth.

It smells of flowers, like the ones that grow out beside the side of the road where the tire swing hands. But, it also has a hint of fruit, close to the smell of apple cherry pie her aunt used to make when they visited. It smells like summer and she smiles because it's so sweet but, not too sweet. It smells perfect. When she opens her eyes, she realizes that it also smells like something else.

It smells like Brittany.

"Can I ask you a question?" Brittany asks. When Santana looks up she realizes that Brittany is a few feet away from her and looking at a rack of different scented candles. Santana contemplates the idea of being asked a question. But before she can think it through enough, her mouth is already answering for her.

"Sure." She rolls her eyes at herself and pretends to find a stack of old western hats interesting.

"Why are you avoiding me?" She wonders from across a stack of cowboy shirts. Her voice is low, but certain.

"I am not." Santana scoffs and takes a step further down the aisle, but Brittany just follows her down the other aisle and studies her. "We're hangin' out, aren't we?" Brittany nods, but seems preoccupied with the direction of her questioning.

"_Then_," Brittany drawls out. "How come you haven't said anything about the other night?" She wonders with a tilt of her head. Santana knows what she is talking about, but she plays aloof and shrugs her shoulders. "When I kissed you." She explains further what she meant and Santana fumbles with a cow milk pitcher and tosses her a look.

"I guess I just assumed it was an accident." Santana replies and clears her throat as she places the cow milk pitcher back where she found it. Last thing she wants is to draw any attention to this conversation. "It was the heat of the moment or whatever." She tries to turn her focus onto something else. But it's of no use as Brittany just follows her every move, even if she is in the other aisle. Santana's shoulders slump when Brittany's hands grab onto the shelf that separates them and leans towards her.

"I kissed you because I wanted to kiss you." Brittany tells her. "I've _been_ wanting to kiss you." She adds with even more sureness.

Without warning, Santana turns on her heels and makes her way towards the door leaving Brittany by herself in the next aisle. She isn't sure what is going on, but she knows that it's getting a bit too serious for her liking. Or at least for her comfort. When she steps outside into the late December Texas night time air, she shakes her head. The kiss that was or almost was but more importantly should not have been feels like a distant dream of a memory. There are some parts of her brain that cannot even comprehend that it had happen, yet she knows that it did because she was there. She stood completely still and let it happen. She closed her eyes and felt those soft lips on her own and it…

"Santana." Brittany calls her name, interrupting her thoughts and she huffs as she turns around to look at her.

"Why are you doing this?" Santana asks in frustration, but she makes sure to control her tone and volume. Brittany steps closer to her and tilts her head to the side innocently.

"Because," She starts slowly and dips her head, locking eyes with Santana. "I like you." Santana scoffs and kicks at some rocks. "Why are _you_?" Brittany challenges and receives a surprised looks in return.

"Why am I what?" Santana spits back, obviously confused.

"Acting like, _me_ liking _you_ is silly." Brittany explains. This only causes Santana to chuckle and turn back towards the parking lot and walk to the truck. Brittany follows in silence and waits patiently for a response as she turns the key in the ignition. When she doesn't get anything, she backs out of the spot and pulls out of the parking lot and back onto the highway.

"I… I'm not…" Santana finally breaks their silence, obviously responding to the last thing Brittany had said to her. Her voice is low, almost a whisper, and she shakes her head. "This isn't something you just wake up and decide on." She explains.

"I know." Brittany replies as she turns off onto the South Service Road. "And I didn't."

She's known Brittany since they were single digits kids running around through the sprinklers in their one piece bathing suits. They played hide and seek, made mud pies and caught lightening bugs together. Once, Brittany even performed a marriage for Santana and one of her Ken dolls she'd strangely named Gerard. Sure, they had history. But it was based on friendship.

It's not that Brittany isn't Santana's type. She's totally Santana's type; type being an attractive girl. But, there are so many other factors in this situation that totally takes away any truth to Quinn's ideas and assumptions. Besides, Santana is a right fuck up. If anything, she is the opposite of anything and everything Brittany would ever want or need for that matter.

"_So_," Brittany starts up conversation again as she pulls her truck into the Lopez driveway. "We've got our Knox City New Year's bash comin' up soon." She informs the girl beside her who is busy trying to gather her stuff before this turns into a different kind of conversation.

"Oh?" Santana replies politely.

"Yeah, and, well it was supposed to be tied into celebrating winning of state." She shrugs but still beams over at Santana who finally acknowledges her with a smirk and a short laugh.

"You Texas people and your football." Santana comments with amusement.

"Laugh all you want." Brittany shakes her head and rolls her eyes at herself for assuming Santana was done with all these stereotypical Texas jokes. "You should come." She suggests and Santana's laughter slowly subsides. "You should come to the party, with me."

* * *

><p>Forgoing the Knox City 'New Year's slash the boy's almost won state' party, leaves Santana to her own devices. Aunt Linda had tried to talk Santana into going, but the young girl just wasn't going to budge. So instead, Santana is Aunt Linda's designated driver who has to pick her up and some ungodly hour of the evening.<p>

So, instead of a nice home cooked meal, Santana has to figure out on her own what to feed herself. She had thought about stopping by Carmel's, but literally everyone and their mother is at this gathering, leaving mostly all of the shops closed for the celebration. As she turns her aunt's truck onto Main, she realizes that it makes sense why all the stores would be closed. The streets are practically filled with the folk of Knox City with sparklers, flags, hats, whistles and every other annoying thing that people play with at New Year's parties.

Santana pulls over to let her aunt out to travel the rest of the way with the other people from town. Aunt Linda leans over towards her niece, kisses her temple and hugs her tightly. She holds her a few seconds longer than she has in a while, but Santana lets her and even hugs her back.

"Happy New Year, Santana." Aunt Linda tells her and rubs out the smudge of lipstick she had left on her cheek. "You sure you don't want to come with me? It'll be fun." She tries once again to talk the younger girl into joining her, but it is of no use as she gets a quick shake of the head.

"Nah." Santana smiles politely but waves off the idea. "I'm good. But, you have a fun time." She nudges Aunt Linda towards the passenger side door.

"Okay, okay." Aunt Linda chuckles and finally slips out of the truck. "Oh look, hey Quinn." She waves over the blonde girl who smiles and comes over to the truck.

"Hey Miss Linda." Quinn greets and sends Santana a wave.

"Well, maybe _you _can talk Santana into being a Knox City citizen for the night." Aunt Linda bumps her shoulder into Quinn's and turns away. "I'm off to enjoy my night off of Santana watching."

The two teenagers chuckle at Aunt Linda easily falling in with a crowd of people that look familiar to Santana, so she feels at ease knowing her aunt will enjoy herself. Santana lets out a sigh just as Quinn looks back at her, only she isn't looking at Quinn.

"What's wrong?" Quinn asks.

"Nothing." Santana tells her as she looks across the street longingly. Quinn follows her line of vision and twists her lips when her eyes fall onto Brittany who is with a group of cheerleaders. Unsure of how to broach the subject she's come to realize sooner than others as the case may be, she decides to just go into it. Again.

"You think she knows yet?" Quinn chances and arches an eyebrow at Santana.

"What's that?" Santana replies, completely unaware of what Quinn is aiming at.

"That you like her back?" She explains with ease and leans her arms on the passenger side door where the window is open.

"What?" Santana scoffs and tries to wave her friend's crazy ideas away from her with her hand.

"Please." Quinn laughs out. "It's painfully obvious." Santana looks down at her cell phone that she is fiddling with in her hands, but doesn't respond to her friend. "So, she just kissed you for no reason."

"She's confused." Santana quickly jumps in and her eyes dart to Quinn's that are slightly shadowed from the night time taking over Main Street.

"Maybe about everything else, but not about you." Quinn points out. "I think you're the only sure thing in her life, same goes for you with her." She explains further and gives a quick glance over her shoulder to where Brittany once was but no longer is. "It's not too late to join the party. Kurt and I are gonna go back to my place after the ball drops and watch really bad 90's movies." She gives it one last go at trying to get Santana to stay and party with the rest of Knox City. "So, no New Year's kiss for Santana Lopez this year?" She asks with a quirked eyebrow and Santana just gives her a face that reads 'I'm not amused'.

"What about you? I've seen you checking out that kid on the football team." Santana comments smugly and she enjoys the blush that creeps on Quinn's cheeks. "Sam or something, right?"

"Are you comin' or not?" Quinn asks point blank, completely ignoring her friend's attempt to embarrass her, even if it did work.

But just as she thought, Santana declines the offer and after a quick goodbye and a Happy New Year. Quinn watches Santana drive back down the way she came in the dark and all alone.

On the other side of the town Mayor Pierce is busy doing paper work while bossing her assistant around to do her personal work. The rest of the office is out for the town event, but as usual, Annie Pierce stays where she feels the most power.

"Shouldn't we be at that party?" Terri whines as she peers through the blinds on the window watching some town's people walk by. "Wouldn't that be a great place for a stakeout?"

"It's not a stakeout Terri." Annie Pierce huffs as she ruffles through some papers. "And for God sakes can you just sit down."

"I'm good with recon, really." Terri assures her boss as she takes a seat across from her. "I'm great at stealth. How else do you think I found out my ex-husband was having an emotional affair?" Annie Pierce looks over her papers to regard the other woman for a moment. "And not that I don't appreciate the 'politician wife look', but, this was not in the job description when I signed up."

"In that case, I can release you and you can go right back to being the shop keep at Sheets n' Things."

"_I was Assistant Manager_." Terrie reminds her boss in frustration. "Why does nobody remember this? It's a highly skilled job."

"Probably because you were only the Assistant Manager of a Sheets n' things in the middle of Texas." Mrs. Pierce points out, unimpressed at her assistants resume.

"Well, at least this is a good gig." Terri muses. "Even if all I do is stalk your own daughter for you." She sighs and glances around her boss's office. "Why am I even watching her?"

Mrs. Pierce doesn't have to explain herself. She never does. This time is no different. Annie Pierce has always made it clear to anyone in town, especially those who are her subordinates that nothing gets in the way of her family being happy. In this case, it winds up being the delinquent who moved in next door. She's not about to let a seventeen year old, lesbian, criminal corrupt her daughter and change the dream she's dreamed for Brittany's future.

* * *

><p>The next day Santana spends her time going through the pamphlets that Miss Pillsbury has been giving to her. There are a lot of choices for her as it may be. There are places in Boston she can check out. There are even some universities in New York and Connecticut. It's actually kind of awesome to know that her social worker has such high hopes for her and that she apparently can get into places like these. As she flips through some more, she stumbles upon the pamphlet for the University of Texas.<p>

She wonders if Brittany will actually follow through with what the Mayor of Knox wants or what she actually wants. She wonders if Brittany has considered schools near Boston. Then she wonders if Brittany has considered schools further away from Boston. And then, she wonders if Brittany is upset that she didn't show up to the party last night. She didn't even watch the ball drop on television.

Are there really any comparisons to watching the New Year's ball drop?

But, Brittany should have known that when Santana said 'maybe' she really meant 'probably not'. Aunt Linda knew that already. However, it doesn't make that weird pull in her gut go away. She tosses her college pamphlets to her bed and pushes herself up from it. Before she knows it, she's already climbing over the fence separating the Lopez yard and the Pierce yard. The climb into Brittany's window is definitely made easier by it being open. When she stumbles into the room, having to push the drapes away, she spots Brittany sitting on her bed. It's quiet, except for the sound of the television.

"Happy New Year." Santana greets in a tiny voice. Brittany regards her with a flick of her eyes, but quickly turns her attention back to the TV.

"Happy New Year." She replies with a forced half smile. Santana deflates and bites down on her bottom lip as she figures out what to say next.

"What are you doin'?" Santana asks as she awkwardly steps further into Brittany's bedroom. It's fairly obvious what she has been doing, or at least trying to do if the flickering of the television is anything to go by.

"Watchin' a movie." Brittany tells her plainly as she puts the television on mute and moves to the side of her bed to watch Santana instead. Santana nods, gives the screen a glance and shrugs.

"What's this?" She points towards the movie playing out realizing she doesn't recognize it.

"Little Women." Brittany answers, sounding somewhat disappointed, as she tosses the remote to the top of her bed.

"Oh, I think I've seen that once or twice." Santana recalls having to watch the movie once in school after reading the book and then another time it happened to be on when she was cleaning up a mess her mother had made one night after drinking too much.

"I've seen it a million times." Brittany relays, but her tone is still somber. "I don't really know why, its super depressing."

"There's gotta be something you like about it if you've watched it that many times." Santana points out.

"I never liked it. I think I keep rewatchin' it because I want it to end differently." Santana laughs because it's hardly plausible to have a different ending to a story that has been around for forever. "No, seriously. I mean, the entire time I'm just waitin' for Jo and Laurie to finally get together. But he always settles for Amy." She shakes her head and points to the screen where the character Amy is smiling away. "He settles for Amy because he can't have Jo. He loves Jo though. Even with her flaws, and mostly because she's passionate, which, I guess _is_ her flaw." Santana smirks with intrigue at how in depth Brittany has thought about this particular story. "And isn't that what love is all about anyway? That he doesn't love her in spite of those things but he loves her because of them." Brittany looks to Santana who has no response except for a curious stare. "I think he does. And wouldn't that be the greatest? To find someone who loves you exactly as you are. I guess I don't like it because of that. That Laurie settles for a half assed version of Jo because she's too afraid that she might love him back just as fiercely."

"Can I show you something?" Santana asks, realizing that maybe there is something a little better than watching the New Year's ball drop. Brittany stares at her, her interest peaked at the fact that _Santana_ wants to show her something.

"Okay." She moves from her bed and follows the other girl out the way she entered, through her window.

They hop the fence to get back on the Lopez side and Santana leads her towards the shed in her aunt's backyard. Brittany smirks when she takes notice of the tiny ladder propped up against the side of the shed's roof, sort of like when they were kids. Santana grips the side of the ladder and motions with her hand for her to climb on up. She does as requested and it's as if she is transporting back to her younger years when they climbed up and jumped from this tiny metal shed all day long.

When Santana finally makes her way onto the roof, she shuffles herself towards the middle beside Brittany who has already taken her usual seat. They smile at one another and Brittany waits expectantly for what it is Santana brought her up there to show her. She looks down when Santana points towards a spot on the shed and she laughs.

"Wow." Brittany breathes out and reaches down to rub her fingers over the etched out markings of their names on the shed. "How old were we?" She asks taking note of how sloppy their hand writing was back then.

"Like, six." Santana chuckles and runs her own fingertips over her and Brittany's name.

"I completely forgot about this." Brittany admits and Santana smiles to herself, wondering if it were even possible for her to remember something that Brittany didn't. Her brain began racing, thinking up other things that she may recall more easily.

"I found it when I first got here." Santana tells her. "When we weren't swingin' on that tire in front, I remember sitting here a lot." She reminds with an air of contentment in her tone. "I don't think I've ever seen a Boston sunset." She mutters more to herself. "Even if I did, I don't think it could compare." She points ahead of them towards the Texas sky. "Sunsets remind me of you." Brittany smiles as she looks off at the multicolored canvas before them.

They sit on the roof of the shed and the metal is cold beneath them as they stare off into the sky that seems endless behind their houses. The sun is slowly falling, looking as though it is about to kiss the earth good day to leave the moon in its wake.

Santana looks out of the corner of her eye and grins at the way Brittany watches the setting sun. She wonders when it was that they grew up. When the moment happened that they no longer were those little girls with dirt on their hands and a tire swinging them about. She also wonders if Brittany is right about her and that she is still that little girl, somewhere deep down.

Her eyes fall down to the space between them. Their hands are resting against the metal roof as they lean in their sitting position. She turns her attention back to the sky as the sun reaches and grazes its destination, leaving the sky a blazing red, pink and orange color. It's pretty, of course. But, she thinks, she prefers the daylight with the sun high up in the sky.

Santana's fingers inch across the roof until they brush Brittany's. She can see Brittany turn to her as their fingers touch and she smiles, all the while staring at the red, pink and orange sunset sky. She likes the day because she's decided blue her favorite color out of them all. Yes, blue. It's calming and lovely and bright.

Also, it's the color of Brittany's eyes.

Santana unexpectantly jumps off of the shed and extends her hand to Brittany, a request known to all as one of two things; 'follow me' or 'may I have this dance'. In the case of the two friends, it means both and are equally aware of this. Brittany carefully moves from her spot on the roof to the edge and hops down to meet Santana. They smile at one another as Brittany places her hand into Santana's. There is no actual music, at least none that is playing out from any speakers. But, there is music playing in their hearts and it is loud enough for both of them to hear.

Santana smiles sweetly as she places Brittany's hand on her hip and then her own on Brittany's shoulder. They sway from side to side in Aunt Linda's backyard behind the shed, holding one another close. A look of content crosses over Brittany's features as she finally lets out the air she had been holding hostage. She jokingly bends her knees to make herself Santana's height and the two giggle when she nearly stumbles backwards. When she's at her regular height, she takes stock in the beauty before her.

"I don't know if I..." Santana clears her throat and smirks at herself. "You've been so great to me since I got here and I've been nothing short of a bitch. I don't know if I'm the person you need me to be." She admits with concern in her eyes. Brittany's stare softens and she tilts her head to the side trying to find the emotion behind those dark eyes. "But," Santana continues with a nod of encouragement to herself. "I want to be." She watches the way Brittany's confused and worried eyes and lips turn into a smile and her eyes light up.

"You already are." Brittany assures her, pulling their clasped hands close against her chest. "You're still the girl who loves the smell of summer rain." She explains and Santana breathes out a chuckle. "You're the girl who watches me dance and thinks I don't know it." She grins and Santana can feel the heat rise to her cheeks. "You'll always be that girl to me no matter how much you think you're not."

"Can I tell you something I've never told anyone?" Santana asks her voice low and husky with her chin lowered, close to her chest.

"Of course." Brittany nods, slight worry mixed with curiosity in her eyes.

"When we were twelve, I made a promise to you that I'd kiss you the next summer I saw you. Ya know, if you hadn't been kissed yet." She starts and she can't figure out why this feels so awkward and she's nervous and embarrassed, but she pushes through it. After getting a tight lipped grin from Brittany, she figures they are on the same page so far and takes a shaky breath to encourage herself to continue. Santana sucks in her lips and her eyes flicker down to her hands, not paying much attention to the way her fingers twist and fidget against the fabric of Brittany's shirt. "I meant it when I made that promise to you. But…" She giggles and if it wasn't so quiet, it would have gone unheard. She flips her hair as she lifts her eyes to meet those waiting blues and offers a small smile. "You know, I spent _all_ of the seventh grade avoiding spin the bottle and seven minutes in heaven on the off chance that I'd be socially forced to kiss some brace faced _boy_." Brittany giggles and Santana can't fight the small chuckle that rolls from her throat as she blinks away tears that have begun to form for reasons she's not aware of. "I had hoped that, by the next summer when I saw you again," She continues with a soft voice. "That even if you had been kissed, that you'd still want the one I promised you." The corner of Santana's mouth turns up, but she fights it, afraid any submission to emotion would cause her to tumble into an unknown. "I think I was more pissed at my parents for making me miss my big chance to kiss you than I was about them getting divorced." Brittany bites on the insides on her lips and her chin quivers as she watches these walls around Santana slowly come down and that it is Santana who is the one taking them down. "I meant it when I said I could never forget you. It's just not possible." She swallows this lump that's seemed to form in her throat and she opens her mouth to keep talking, but all that comes out is a sigh of a breath. Clamping her mouth shut to regain her footing, she clears her throat and tilts her head and smiles through the pain that this honesty causes her. "See, when I was thirteen I was all ready. I had this movie scene I'd played out in my mind. I was sure I was set." Again, she shrugs her shoulders. It's all she can manage to do to keep herself from doing what she does best; run away. "I think the thing I wasn't at all prepared for was for _you_ to _kiss_ me first." For a moment, she looks away again and shakes her head, but is quick to bring her focus back on Brittany. "Especially not after all these years between us. The truth is, that night in the garage… it should have been the first kiss I promised you. I ran away and… I don't really know why. I don't have an answer for that. But I…" Santana stops speaking when Brittany presses her index finger to her lips to quiet her.

"If I kiss you," Brittany whispers and her eyes flit from Santana's and then to her parted lips. "Will you kiss me back?" Santana gulps and is halfway between nodding and shaking her head.

"Brittany," Santana nearly chokes out. "It's different now." She's committed to the head shake, but she stands her ground, not pulling away from Brittany. "We're not twelve year olds making pinky promises." Brittany raises her finger to Santana's lips once again, silencing her.

Santana can't exactly read Brittany's facial expression right now, so she remains quiet. When the finger leaves her lips, she swallows hard and her eyes search the blue ones staring right back at her. Slowly, their heads lean closer, tilt and their tongues moisten their lips.

"Brittany!" Mrs. Pierce calls out, inevitably stopping them just before their lips can meet. Their breathe hitches and mixes and quickens in the moment.

Brittany's eyes fall down to the space between them that barely exists and she sighs. Santana watches the war going on inside her friend's head. As much as both of them want to ignore the cry from Brittany's mother and get back to where they were headed, they don't want the moment to be wasted, even if they don't exactly say those words.

"I guess…" Santana says, breaking the silence and shrugs her shoulders. Brittany clears her throat and nods her head as she takes a step back. Her eyes fall to glance at her hands that are entwined with Santana's and she smiles.

Santana watches her walk away with a small smile of wonderment. She takes a breath and for a second wonders if she had been holding it for a while. It felt fresh and amazing to breathe this air. Her mouth closes and she swallows, her tongue and lips are dry. She feels funny and her chest feels tight. Before Brittany turns towards her house as she reaches the end of the bushes that separate their house after the fence, she looks over her shoulder back at Santana.

"_Crap_." Santana mutters to herself.


	10. Chapter 10

**For the Girl with the Bluest Eyes in Texas**

_**July, 2007**_

_It's a rainy summer night in Boston. Downstairs Santana can hear the screaming of voices and the banging of cabinets and drawers from her parents fighting. The divorce is not final, but her father is no longer living with them, but with a new girlfriend on the other side of town. They are fighting about the things that they always fight about; things in the house, things around the house and who it was exactly that broke their relationship. These are sounds that Santana has been getting used to; the yelling. It clouds her mind and makes the good memories foggy and fading._

_Sometimes she hears her mother tell her soon to be ex-husband to keep his voice down because the 'kids' are upstairs or home or will hear him. The sometimes that she does say this, Mr. Lopez just leaves, letting his soon to be ex-wife deal with the repercussions and possible questions that arise from the 'kids'. But, Santana's given up on the questions because she's heard all of the answers she needs through the walls of the house since the end of last summer._

_Whenever she tries to talk to her older brother about the happenings around the Lopez house, he just brushes her off with a comment about how she wouldn't understand because it's adult stuff. When he says things like that, Santana wishes that she never has to become an adult because it looks and sounds like it hurts too much. But, since she cannot fly to Neverland with Peter Pan and never grow up, Santana has decided that she will make the conscious choice of never falling in love. Falling in love, as it has proven to her, only causes destruction and chaos and pain._

_She walks over to her stereo and turns it on full blast in the hopes of making the voices of her parents drown out into the music of a familiar tune. 'Landslide' plays through her room and it reminds her of a better time, a brighter time. _

_She opens her window and watches the rain hit the roof and slide off into the gutter. She sticks her hand out and hums the words of the song to herself. Santana smiles sadly as she recalls the last time she'd played in the rain. It was the last time she saw Brittany. They had snuck out of their rooms in the middle of the night and spun around. They smiled and laughed and made promises and swore on pinkies. _

_It was perfect. _

_But nothing's perfect. As she watches the rain hit her skin she thinks about how things that seem perfect are the things that only last for a little while. Rain, like perfection, it fades away. _

_It doesn't stop her from remembering though, those perfect summers. Because, even if perfection is like the rain and eventually fades away, it's still beautiful._

* * *

><p><strong>As You Turn My Way and Say<strong>

_**January/February, 2012**_

After dinner all Santana could think about was the almost kiss out by the shed. It was amazing that she even still had thoughts on it because it was all she thought about during dinner too. Aunt Linda tried to get some conversation out of her, but instead, all she received were some dreamy far off looks out of her niece.

Even now, in bed, Santana can't seem to find anything else to keep her mind occupied. She tries though. She pushes memories from back in Boston, but somehow or another, her mind traces its steps back to good old Knox City, Texas and focuses on a particular blonde from up or down the road. Santana even tries to get down to the bottom of whether it's up or down the road, but gives up, because all she can envision is Brittany.

Everything that Brittany says to her, all the things that she has said to her since she rolled back into town, echoes in her mind. They are sweet things and kind things and things that Santana most certainly isn't. Of course, she remembers loving the smell of summer rain. It's one of those things that just is. It was sweet and bitter at the same time, if that is even possible. But it was even more than that. Still, she does love that scent.

Santana loves the smell of summer rain because it reminds her of the summers that she spent in Knox City, Texas. It reminds her of her Aunt Linda's house and the way her Uncle Roger used to roll his motorcycle into the shed just before the rain came pouring down. It reminds her of being carefree as she jumped in puddles barefoot and laughed. She loves the smell of summer rain because no matter where she is, the scent always brings her back to Knox. It always brings her back to this place. And, she realizes, it always brings her back to Brittany.

A groan escapes her as she kicks at the covers at her feet and bunches her pillow under her head. Normally, Santana sleeps on her side or even on her stomach. But now, she seems to be set on lying on her back, which usually proves to be her best thinking position. Sometimes, she thinks herself so hard that she can fall asleep just like that. She takes the chance of closing her eyes, hoping that she will exhaust herself by thinking hard enough.

But then a sound catches her ear. It's a familiar sound and if she was back home, she would have jumped out of her bed already. But, oddly enough, the sound of someone slipping in through her bedroom room window in Knox City, Texas is comforting. Probably because she knows who the culprit is. She opens her eyes and lifts her head and watches as the girl next door walks on her tippy toes, quickly yet elegantly, towards in her bed.

"Brittany," Santana speaks in a hushed voice and sits up in bed, leaning on her hands. "What are you doin'?" Her whisper is rushed because she's nervous.

"I have somethin' I need to…" Brittany starts, but stops herself just as she reaches the bed and sits beside Santana so is facing her. "I need to say somethin' to you."

"Oh… 'kay." Santana stammers.

It's quiet for a few seconds and then Brittany shifts closer. She lifts her hands up to the sides of Santana's face to cup her cheeks. Santana's chest stutters and one of her hands come up to grip at Brittany's wrist, ready to pull it away, only she doesn't.

"I've been waitin' too." Brittany tells her in a low voice as she leans in. "I never forgot." Santana can just make out the small grin on her face. "Promises made on pinkies are forever." She whispers. "You're_ unforgettable _Santana Lopez." Brittany breathes out onto Santana's lips. "_Now's_ your chance." Her voice is barely audible at this point.

"_Britt_," Santana breathes out and slightly hangs her head. "I… _I can't_." She shakes her head and gently tugs at the wrist in her grip.

"Can't or won't?" Brittany asks.

"What's the difference?" Santana challenges, but Brittany doesn't budge making the other girl huff. "If I kiss you, it'll be because I haven't kissed anyone in a very long time." Santana explains. "And to be honest, I usually don't do a lot of kissing… at least not on the mouth." She adds with a roll of her eyes, which is really just a way to look away. "Is that what you want though?" She asks. "A meaningless kiss from a girl you haven't seen in years?" Brittany just stares back at her, letting her know she doesn't believe a word that she has just spoken.

"_What_ are you _so afraid of_?" Brittany asks. The frustration in her voice is palpable but it's laced in a caring tone that is unmistakably genuine. Santana rolls her eyes, but out of Brittany's vision, and sucks in her lips. "You're _not_ gonna hurt me." She assures her and rubs her thumbs gently against tanned skin. Santana raises her eyes, finding blues staring back at her, offering so much. Too much.

"Brittany," Santana sighs and lifts her other hand to grab at Brittany's other wrist. "_I can't_." She forces out once more, eyes downcast and hangs her head. Brittany remains quiet for a little longer, never letting her hands on Santana's cheeks shift. When Santana doesn't say anything for a long while, Brittany drops her hand and goes to move. "Wait." Santana begs in a whisper as she grabs Brittany's hand. "Stay." She repeats when Brittany looks up from their hands. "Stay, here. With me." It's not a question, but a plea. "Please."

Santana shuffles on her bed closer to the wall making a spot for Brittany beside her. She pulls her covers back so that her friend can slip under there with her. When Brittany takes the offered place, Santana pulls the blanket over the both of them and rests her head against the wall and sighs. Brittany looks around the dark room, her eyes have adjusted a while ago, but there are still shadows covering lots of the corners bits of wall. The way she can only see some of the room is how she feels she sees Santana in this moment, in bits and pieces. But she knows, deep down, she can see everything even if Santana is trying to hide it in the dark.

"Is it me?" Brittany wonders in a louder whisper. She wonders if maybe it's that Santana just doesn't want to kiss _her_.

"It's… there's just…" Santana stammers, unable to put words to her thoughts of jumbled confusion and what she actually feels. "I just know that I can't."

"Yes." Brittany presses. "You _can_." She tells her, turning her attention back on the girl beside her.

"A kiss is…" Santana begins but her voice fails.

"Just a kiss." Brittany finishes for her, only it's not what she was going to say at all.

"Only, it's not." Santana corrects turning her attention away from the wall and to Brittany.

"How's that? Why?" Brittany asks in confusion.

"Because, sometimes kissing isn't just kissing. Sometimes it's something else entirely. Like, the things we can't say 'cause we don't know what to say or how to say it. It's more than words though. Sometimes kissing… it's _everything_." Santana explains. "So, no. It's not that simple. A kiss is never just a kiss. It's anything but simple."

"Is that what you're afraid of?" Brittany wonders with a shake of her head, slightly amazed at how thoughtful Santana sounds in this moment.

"It's not just that." Santana replies. Brittany's brow furrows as she searches those dark brown eyes looking back at her with regret. It takes a few moments, but then, Brittany understands what she really means. She lets out a slow breath and nods once before shaking it from side to side and reaches up once more to place a hand on the other girl's cheek only to have her wrist grabbed by Santana's hand again.

"I am _not_ going to hurt you, Santana." Brittany dips her head when Santana's focus sways, but she maintains eye contact. "This won't hurt." She tells her with such certainty. "I promise." Brittany lifts her other hand up and offers her pinky to Santana, who eyes it up carefully.

Santana's expression softens at her words and her grip on that wrist slackens a bit and lifts her other hand to wrap her pinky around Brittany's. Her eyes fall to her lap and then to Brittany's, then her arms until finally she is looking up at the girl's face who is still just inches away. Her hand slides from wrist, down a forearm and up to a shoulder where it stops and gently rests. Ever so slowly, Santana leans her head forward, tilts it to the side a bit and closes her eyes as her lips brush Brittany's.

It's just a peck at first, mouths slightly open for a little taste. Santana's breath catches in her throat when she feels a small puff of air from a sigh hit her tongue from Brittany. When she goes back in for more, she moves her hand from Brittany's shoulder to the back of her neck, deepening the kiss. Their mouths open wider, letting their tongues meet and Brittany's body shifts closer to Santana's on the bed.

"See," Brittany whispers as Santana breathes out unevenly. "Painless."

Brittany is cut off by Santana pressing her lips firmly against hers. It's soft, of course, but more certain than a few seconds ago. Their kisses are like cotton candy. It's gentle and fluffy the way it plays against her lips and melts on your tongue. All Brittany can see behind her closed eyes are bits of cotton candy floating around and all she can taste is the sweetness of Santana's tongue on her own. Kissing Santana is like dancing in a room of cotton candy. It's magical and delicious. It's perfect.

To Santana, well, kissing Brittany feels like summer rain. It's like those times she would spin around and around with her arms outstretched, her face towards the sky and her mouth open awaiting the droplets. Brittany's tongue dancing around her own is like summer rain in her mouth. It's cool but warm and it's refreshing and she's dizzy but… it's perfect.

When their heads hit the pillow, their kisses slow down until finally they pull apart for air. Brittany's fingers are playing with strands of dark hair while her chest heaves as she tries to steady her heart. Santana's hand rests at the back of Brittany's shoulder, toying with the fabric of her shirt where the sleeve has ridden up and she is touching skin.

"I'm not goin' anywhere." Brittany whispers before Santana can speak a word. She can read in those brown eyes a request that had not yet made its way to lips. Santana swallows and a small smile comes to her mouth as she nods once. "Ever." Brittany adds quietly before leaning in and pressing another kiss to Santana.

When Santana wakes up she feels wind hit her face. She's slightly startled at the cool breeze and her attention is brought to her open bedroom window. The curtains are moving about as the wind flies in and out of her room. But what catches her eye more is the empty spot beside her. She looks around her room and finds that Brittany is nowhere to be found. With a grunt and a sigh, she shifts into a sitting position and runs her fingers through her hair.

She wonders when Brittany left her. Did she leave after Santana fell asleep? Did she sleep beside her and then leave a little while ago? Did Santana just dream everything that happened last night? But, no. She didn't dream it. Her fingers come up to brush her lips and she can still feel them tingling which happens with so much kissing. It was good kissing too. _Really_ good kissing.

Her eyes fall to her blanket, fingers still lightly touching her lips and she's suddenly not thinking of anything in particular. And with that clear mind, it goes completely unnoticed by her that she's smiling.

"Where have you been young lady?" Mrs. Pierce hollers, practically bounding down the front steps of the Pierce home. Brittany spares an awkward glance towards the direction she just came, the Lopez house, before looking back at her mother. "Your father and I have been worried sick all mornin'." She huffs, finally coming to a halt when she reaches her daughter and takes notice of her bare feet.

"Sorry Mom," Brittany says as she makes her way around her mother and walks into the house. "We were hangin' out and got to talkin' and," She shrugs and motions towards Linda Lopez's place, unable to hide the tiny smirk on her lips from her mother, though she thinks she pulls it off. "I was _just_ next door. It's not like I was out on the town." She tries to make it sound so innocent, but Mrs. Pierce can tell by the tiny expressions her daughter is making that whatever it was that transpired over at the neighbor's house was anything but innocent. This idea only makes her madder.

"That is unacceptable." The older woman crosses her arms over her chest and shakes her head. "You can't just sneak out of the house and then come home the next mornin' without tellin' me. Do you know what the neighbors would think, seein' you strollin' in at seven in the mornin'?" She questions, keeping her voice at a whisper, an angry whisper. Brittany's brow furrows and she turns to her mother.

"What neighbors?" Brittany challenges with her arms spread out wide and she laughs. "We live on the South Service Road, miles away from town." She shakes her head and without meaning to, rolls her eyes as she turns to head to her bedroom down the hall. "We live in the middle of nowhere _in_ the middle of nowhere." She mumbles but loud enough to be heard.

It's the first day back to school since Santana and Brittany slow danced to no music behind the shed in Aunt Linda's backyard. It's the first day back to school since they said things and more importantly, since they kissed. Thing was, they didn't really talk much this morning about what happened, or to be more precise, what didn't happen.

Like every school day, Brittany pulls up to the Lopez driveway and like always Santana is standing there, waiting on the porch with her books pulled against her chest. She waves goodbye to her aunt and descends the steps making her way into the unknown. She swallows hard before opening the door to the passenger side of Brittany's powder blue, beat up pickup truck and the door squeaks like it always does. It does nothing to ease the tension that is clearly going to be swimming around them inside the truck's cabin.

They smile at one another as Santana settles herself on her side of the bench seat. She rests her books on her lap and nods when Brittany asks her if she's ready like she does every morning on their way to school. It's silent for the most part, except for the beating in Santana's chest, her moving at an unbearable rapid pace and she is quite certain that Brittany can hear it.

The only thing that Brittany can hear though, besides the engine, is the beating of her own heart. Her hands twist over the steering wheel as she nervously fidgets in her seat. They hit the stop light by Main Street, much like they normally do and she takes her hands off of the wheel letting them come to rest on her lap. Her eyes flicker to the side to see Santana out of the corner of her eye and she can see her passenger is looking down at her books, lower lip between her teeth and her fingers are fiddling with the frayed corner of her textbook.

The sight makes Brittany smile and she momentarily feels relaxed. She sits back more comfortably in her seat and reaches one hand over to Santana and carefully, ever so slightly, brushes her tanned cheek with her finger, hooking some dark hair with it and tucks it behind her ear. It catches Santana off guard, the touch of Brittany's skin on her own and she turns her head in her direction.

"You're hair looks nice today." Brittany tells her softly. Santana stares for a few seconds and smiles when she feels Brittany's hand come to her cheek and her thumb caress the skin beneath it.

"Thanks." Santana can feel her cheeks grow hot and averts her eyes. She nods ahead of her. "Light's green." They quietly ride the rest of the way to school, every now and then stealing glances at the other.

Once at school, they do their usual routine with walking one another to their locker. They stop at Santana's first and Brittany giddily leans up against the one just beside it, staring openly at her friend. Santana can feel heat rise to her cheeks at the eyes locked on her and she awkwardly shifts as she moves her books to and from her locker.

Out of the sea of students brushing by them, chatting about who knows what, Santana becomes _aware_. This is small town Texas and Knox is the smallest of the small. This isn't some big city and some giant school where they can be in this little world of their own. It's different. She's different. Brittany's different.

Everyone that walks by, she senses them staring at Brittany, thinking things up in their mind about the two of them. They're the same things that she used to be afraid of and things that she never wants directed at someone as sweet and innocent as Brittany. She knows that regardless of what is screaming inside of her not to, she has to say something before this get out of hand, more than it already has. The idea of sacrificing Brittany to the gossips and the looks of the town for the sake of her own joy seems completely wrong.

"Brittany," Santana sighs as she closes her locker. "What happened… shouldn't have happened." She explains in a low voice. Brittany is thrown off by the sudden change of tone and seemingly out of nowhere reverse. She stands up straight against the lockers and studies Santana's face.

"But, you said…" Brittany tries to argue.

"I know what I said." Santana interrupts before she can be reminded of her words. "_Sometimes_ we say things, but we mean something else." She explains, but Brittany's face is blank. "_You're my friend_." The blonde looks down, obviously troubled by this statement , but even though Santana's stomach drops at this sight, she can't stop. "My _best_ friend." Santana clarifies and dips her head to find Brittany's eyes. "Like you said, a kiss is just a kiss." She shrugs her shoulders.

"You're really confusing me." Brittany tells her honestly. Santana studies her friend's face as she bites her lip.

"Yeah, well, that makes two of us." She mumbles and shakes her head at herself. "Look," She straightens up and tugs at the strap of her bag on her shoulder. "If we…" She starts in a small whisper, her eyes darting around to check for eavesdroppers. She tries to think of ways to express the possible reasons as to why she would even engage in any sort of tongue action with her longtime friend. "Things haven't changed between us and I don't wanna ruin what we already have. I mean."

"Oh, uh…" Brittany tightens her ponytail and nods, her eyes looking everywhere but at Santana. "Okay."

"It's just that," She huffs, feeling a bit regretful at putting that pout on Brittany's lips. "Britt, our friendship really means a lot to me, why complicate things?"

"Why does it have to be complicated?" Brittany wonders, not at all giving into defeat. Santana tilts her head and sighs, realizing that putting up a fight is going to be harder than she anticipated. Luckily for her though, the bell rings and she finds an out as she spots Quinn heading her way. She leans her back against her locker and offers Brittany an apologetic look as their conversation is being cut short.

"Let's just…" She starts but her words are cut off when she receives an ice cold slushie facial not once, but twice in a row. Santana drops her bag and her book to the floor as she shrieks at the feeling of the ice treat sliding down her face, chest and arms.

"Dyke." Karofsky says loudly as he drops the now empty slushie cup at her feet. Santana wipes her eyes and opens them, trying her hardest not to flinch at the stinging thanks to the syrup dripping into them.

"What did you just call me?" She yells back, taking a step towards the teenage boy who was walking away from her.

"Oh, _I'm sorry_." He turns around as he answers in an obnoxious tone. "You're one of those '_lipstick_ lesbos' right?" He mocks with a smirk on his face and playfully pushes his buddy, getting himself riled up. The other kids in the hallway fall quiet to watch and listen at the situation going on, but he just saunters away leaving a shocked and flustered Santana behind.

"See Britt." Santana mutters as she gathers up her books and her bag from the floor. She spares her a look before she turns to leave. "This is what _I _am. The _dyke_ who gets a slushie facial." Brittany grabs her arm but she tugs it away. "Stop it!" She says through gritted teeth. "Just… go away." She huffs before storming away with slushied ice falling from her to the ground.

She's grateful for the empty locker room. In a way, it feels fitting for her life here in Knox City. She's alone, for the most part, just doing her time. That is, until the door leading into the locker room flies open and she hears the tell tale signs of quick moving feet of someone on a search. Yeah, she's alone, until she's not which is also fitting for her life here in Knox City. She changes her top just as Brittany turns the corner, finally spotting the very girl she marched in here to find.

"You think you're tough don't you?" Brittany asks in a controlled shout, somewhat surprised at the volume of her own voice. Santana's eyes widen, alarmed, but is quick to narrow her stare at the other girl.

"_What_?" She spits out and returns her attention to the contents of her locker.

"You think you're _so_ tough because you push things away." Brittany practically yells at her. "That's not bein' strong. Not to me." She swallows hard and her eyes glisten with unshed tears. "Strength, _real_ strength, it takin' a hold of somethin' with two hands and makin' it stay. 'Cause you're too afraid of how life'll be without it. Bein' tough is flippin' everyone else off and not givin' a damn. Bein' vulnerable," Her voice softens. "But proud. That's real strength. Pushin' things away," She shakes her head. "The good things, that's bein' a coward. Lettin' what people say about you or to you get you down, I don't accept that. I guess the question is whether or not you're brave. So… are you? What are ya gonna do? Push? Or…" Her words hang in the air in an unfinished question that is already understood by both.

Santana stares at her with her hand resting on her gym locker door tugs it open and closed a few times before finally slamming it shut. She stands there, fists bunched at her side and the tiniest of tears glistening in her eyes. Brittany, still standing her ground in front of her a few feet away in the locker room, her eyes focused.

"If you push me," Brittany starts again, her voice is soft and cracks a bit. "I'm pushin' right back."

"I..." Santana tries to speak, but only a squeak comes out.

So, instead of words that express the whys and other excuses that she can't seem to verbalize, her feet move forward. She doesn't stop, even when she reaches Brittany. Her hands fly up, fists opening, and she brings her hands to the sides of Brittany's face. Santana's lips crash into Brittany's with force. Their mouths sloppily meet, uneven from their different heights, which Santana fixes by moving to her tippy toes. Brittany's uncertain arms hang, but only for a moment, soon they are wrapping themselves around Santana's petite figure drawing their bodies closer.

Before the kiss can grow anymore and before things can escalate further, the door to the girl's locker room swings open and bangs against the tile walls of the room and voices bounce off of the walls. The sound of chit chat, laughter and the door cause them to pull away from their embrace. Santana watches the way Brittany steps away from her, smiles and wipes her mouth with her fingers.

Soon enough, the row of lockers they are standing in is infiltrated by a small group of girls who have the unfortunate first period gym class. A few of them say 'hi' to Brittany, who of course regards them in the same greeting and a pleasant smile. Santana makes her way back over towards her gym locker and opens it once more, still needing to finish changing from her slushie showdown.

"I'll see you at lunch." Brittany whispers in her ear and her lips graze her cheek as she pulls away. Santana feels a rush of goose bumps spread out across her skin at that sensation of Brittany's breath on her body. She gulps before she slaps on a smile and turns to look at Brittany who is already moving away from her, letting a finger linger on her arm as she makes to leave.

"Okay." Santana nods as her own fingers twists and turn the dial of the lock and watches Brittany walk away from her. When Brittany vanishes around the corner of the row of lockers, Santana's eyes make their way back to where her lock is and she notices a tiny glance from one of the girls with first period gym.

She's quick to avert her eyes, bringing her focus to the dial of her combination lock. But the curious glance from the girl sitting on the bench worries her, so she takes another look over. When she does, she catches that girl sharing little whispers with another girl and the two send a few not so subtle stares in Santana's direction.

Down on Charles Avenue, just off of Main Street, Terri Del Monaco rushes through the elevator doors as soon as they open. As she swiftly moves across the marble floor of the Knox City Town Hall building, she glances down at the tray of coffee she had been asked to retrieve by the mayor's secretary. Lucky for her and her job, she has been successful in her mission.

But, it's not just the coffee that Terri is itching to get to the mayor, it's the bits of information she has gathered for her. She's past caring about why she is being sent to keep an eye on the mayor's daughter as it's not exactly the first time she's been asked to do so. All she cares about is whether or not she has the right sort of information that her boss is looking for.

With the mayor's office door a few feet away, she takes a quick glance over at the secretary to gauge what kind of day it is going to be. She's thankful when she receives just a smile and a small nod, which tells her nothing apocalyptic, has happened. At least, not yet. She adjusts the coffee tray in her hand and tugs at her bag on her shoulder before she lightly taps her knuckles against the heavy wooden door.

"Come in." She hears the mayor respond and she carefully pushes the door open all the while keeping a firm grip on the coffee. "Ugh." Mayor Pierce groans when she sees that it's her assistant Terri at the door with her coffee. "I almost had to wait." She shakes her, completely disregarding the fact that she is being rude to her assistant, but Terri is used to it. For Terri, the mayor could honestly get her to do just about anything because being the assistant to the mayor of Knox City has proven to be a pretty good gig. "Close the door." She tells her with a motion of her hand as she slowly sips her coffee and sits back down behind her huge mahogany desk.

"Linda Lopez's niece has about zero friends." Terri starts as she goes to sit down in the seat across from the mayor. She stops mid air when she receives an unamused look from her boss. "Other than your daughter and the Fabray girl, she has no _other_ friends." She clarifies, but this does nothing better.

"Can you tell me somethin' I don't know?" Mrs. Pierce wonders with irritation and goes about fixing the papers on her desk.

"Well, I haven't seen Brittany with her usual clique of cheerleaders." Terri comments as she recalls her recent mission of Brittany reconnaissance, but of course, this is a bit of information that Mrs. Pierce stumbled up on her own during a football game. "And it seems that Finn Hudson hasn't been hangin' around her much either. In fact, it sort of looked like he walked across the street when he saw her at Holly's the other day." This peaks her interest. Though it's something that she also was a bit in the know about, she is wondering if Terri has some insight or reason. "But, you know boys. They want somethin' one day and then the next day they're over it." Terri explains as she comfortably leans back in her chair and stirs her coffee, like she's at a café with her bestie. She thinks about her own words for a minute and then a troubled look falls over her features. "Or sometimes they're under it and by it I mean someone." She shrugs and as she goes to sip her coffee she glances up at the mayor who is staring at her with an arched eyebrow. "Not sayin' that Brittany is or was goin' to be under Finn Hudson, not even an option." She tries to back track, not wishing to insinuate that sex is the reason for the teenage boy's lack of interest in her boss's daughter.

"Terri," Mayor Pierce groans and rubs her temples with closed eyes. "I'm not at all interested in tryin' not to think about some boy tryin' to get my daughter in the back seat of his pickup." So much for trying to back track Terri thinks.

"Mayor, I have to say," Terri crosses her legs at the knee and leans forward. "I don't think there's anythin' to worry about. Brittany is still a Pantherette and still the most popular girl in school." She smiles happily as if those are the only things a parent should have to worry about. "Besides, it's not like the Lopez girl is here to stay. Didn't it say in her file 'until June'?"

The mayor shakes her head, nods a bit and falls back into her chair then sends Terri away so she can think in peace and quiet. Surely she should feel relieved at the fact that Santana would be leaving in a few short months. But she worries that damage could have already been done. People talk in a small town. Gossip runs fast around a small town like Knox City and she is concerned about the type of person the town will see Brittany as if she continues to keep certain kind of company.

Then, she thinks, perhaps she is right to take matters into her own hands. Maybe she could possibly start a chain of events from happening if she stops them from starting at the get go. Surely there are ways to avoid something catastrophic from going down, such as the dismantlement of her daughter's reputation, if she nips it in the bud.

So when her day comes to a close at the office and she gets the last few minutes on her ride home to think, she takes it upon herself to make matters right. Linda Lopez is a reasonable woman and would understand the plight of a mother wanting to not bear witness the collapse of her daughter's perfect life and the possible condemnation of her future.

Before heading into her own home, she takes the tiny trek down her driveway and around the bushes that separate her front yard from the Lopez front yard. She wonders for a moment, as she makes her way up Linda's dirt driveway, if Santana is home. But, truth be told, it wouldn't matter either way. She is going to confront the situation head on before it becomes a situation. And with a light tap to the front door, she waits for the conversation she has been preparing for all day.

"Annie?" Linda says, bewildered to find her usually evasive neighbor and town's mayor on her front porch. "What can I do ya for?" She asks politely as she steps out onto the porch to meet the other woman. Mayor Pierce regards her with a slight smile and a nod of her head as she steps back to give some space between them.

"We need to have a talk." Annie says.

"Oh?" Aunt Linda moves away from the doorway, letting the screen door bang shut behind her. "What about?" Annie Pierce tilts her head from side to side as she contemplates how to phrase what she wants to say.

"It's your niece." Annie tells her matter of factly and Linda sighs, letting the dish towel that's in her hand hit her thigh.

"Ugh, what has Santana done now?" She asks, almost too afraid to ask because these days _she's_ the one who has to deal with anything and everything Santana.

"Well," The mayor starts, realizing that she hasn't actually caught the young girl doing anything particularly wrong and wonders if evidence of past indiscretions are going to have to be divulged. "I understand that Santana is a bit of a problem child, and please forgive me for being so forward," Linda's eyebrows shoot up at the sound of Annie Pierce offering up an apology before even doing anything. "I think it would be in the best interest for Santana to stop hangin' around Brittany." Linda jerks her head back before she turns it to glance inside for a moment and then reaches back to the door to pull the main door shut a little more, but without actually closing it. She then turns back to face Annie and crosses her arms over her chest, looking back at her neighbor confused and a bit offended.

"I'm…" Linda pauses for a moment and then shakes her head as though she were trying to come back to her senses. "I'm sorry, but, did somethin' happen?" She asks, wondering if there was a fall out of something between the two girls and that maybe Santana has upset Brittany somehow. "I'm sure whatever it was," Linda starts again after Annie doesn't respond right away. "It's all squared away now. Brittany must've snuck over sometime last night because I found them fast asleep this mornin' and they looked fine." She explains with a swing of her dishrag and a gentle smile. "They probably talked it all out last night." The relief she was expecting to see from the woman in front of her never comes, but instead, is replaced by a look of concern and annoyance. To Annie Pierce, the idea that Linda is so liberal and lets her niece with her ambiguous sexuality have girls sleep in her bed and not think anything of it mortifies her.

"Look, I know why she's here and not with her parents." Mayor Pierce reveals and Linda's eyes widen and crosses her arms over her chest. "I'm sure you don't see it, children like her seem to always pull the wool over everyone's eyes, but _I_ know." She motions to herself. "I'm merely looking out for my own daughter here." Linda stares her down for a moment and shakes her head.

"Like the way you were lookin' out for her when you banished her from the Fabray girl." Linda counters.

"Your niece is a bad influence and I don't want her hangin' around Brittany." The mayor states firmly. "I don't want her fillin' my little girl's head with ideas of…" Her hands flail in the air as she can't pick a precise and respectful way to describe what she really thinks of Santana.

"Of what?" Aunt Linda chuckles. "Bein' a teenager?" She mocks her. "Santana has been anything but trouble since she got here." She stretches the truth a bit, but it's for good reason. "I don't really understand the big fuss. The girls are just bein' girls."

"Girls like Brittany are nothin' like girls like Santana." Mayor Pierce says through gritted teeth. Linda arches an eyebrow and studies the woman before her. She's cold and unaware and closed. She's narrow minded and it's in this moment that Linda fully understands exactly what Annie's concern is. But it's more than that one insignificant detail about Santana that worries Annie Pierce, it's all of the details that make up Santana Lopez and they are all so very significant to her.

"Well, maybe you're right." Aunt Linda uncrosses her arms and sets them on her hips and takes in the way the woman in front of her relaxes. "Maybe a girl like Brittany doesn't need a Santana in her life. But… Santana…" She steps to her neighbor. "A girl like Santana, she needs a Brittany. But, you don't see that. You're too busy seein' Santana the way the rest of the world would see if her if they got a glimpse at her file." Mrs. Pierce flinches at this. It's subtle, but Aunt Linda catches it. "Brittany gets Santana. I mean, I don't. But, your daughter sure does. And Santana lets her." Aunt Linda shakes her head and glances down at her porch as the realization of her own words hits her. "Either way, it doesn't matter much to me the why or the how. Honestly, I just thank my lucky stars that there is a girl like Brittany who sees whatever it is she sees in Santana. You should be proud of the young woman your daughter has become." She shakes her head again as she stares back at the mayor and steps back with her hand reaching backwards for her screen door. "It's a shame that she has you for a mother." She goes to turn around but before she does, she turns back to fully face Annie. "Oh yeah, and you may _run_ this town but you don't run me _or_ Santana and you sure as hell don't run your daughter. If you opened your eyes for a second you'd stop tryin' to control her because she's fine. But, instead you're hell bent on molding her into the very picture of everything you weren't at her age." Annie stares back at her in an almost state of shock, not as quick with the banter as Linda seems to be. And before she can gather up the words to come out of her mouth in response, Linda adds one more verbal punch. "See, you forget that we grew up together. This isn't high school anymore."

Before Mrs. Pierce can react to all of what has just been said to her with a valid argument Linda vanishes beyond her screen door and shuts the main house door in one swoop. When Aunt Linda spins around she finds Santana in the hallway, half hidden by the wall. Her eyes are downcast as her fingers grip loosely to the edge of the wall. When she glances up Linda is a bit surprised to find the hint of a smile on her niece's lips, so she just nods and points towards the kitchen.

"Help me with dinner."

* * *

><p>After overhearing her aunt and the mayor have a showdown on the porch the other day, and how her aunt defended her without question, Santana makes the final decision on looking for some sort of job. She figures she owes something to her aunt for not only having her back but for putting up with her for the past few months. It's merely a suggestion that her aunt has made before and she's taking the initiative and doing something right for once.<p>

So when school gets out, Santana makes her way into town to try her luck at reeling in a job. She opens the door to Holly's Daze just as an older couple is walking about. She moves out of their way and motions for them to exit before she enters. The old woman smiles at her and the old man tips his hat as they move past her.

"Bless you." The old man says as way of thanking her and she stutters out a 'you're welcome', unsure of how to respond to him.

When she walks in to the café she takes case of the place. It's empty, but she figures that it's just after three in the afternoon on a Thursday. She slowly makes her way up to the counter, wondering if she is supposed to call out for someone or wait.

"Little Lopez." Holly Holiday greets from the swinging door she's just walked through from the kitchen and sets down a tray of ketchup bottles on a table. "If you're lookin' for Q, she ain't here sweetie." She informs Santana and starts switching ketchup bottles on all the tables to the ones from the tray.

"Oh, uh, no. I'm not lookin' for Quinn." Santana says as she sits on one of the stools at the counter and glances over at the jukebox that's playing a familiar song.

"What can I do ya for? Burger? Shake? Cheese fries?" Holly asks as she continues with her chores.

"Actually, I was wonderin' if you were lookin' for anyone to work." Holly's eyebrows raise and she nods in understanding. "Since I'm stayin' with my aunt, she's been kinda payin' my way around here." Santana explains with a shrug. "I'd like my own cash flow, if ya know what I mean."

"You're hired." Holly tells her, setting the tray filled with nearly empty bottles of ketchup to the counter. Santana's head shakes in disbelief and she looks around the café wondering if she is being tricked.

"Umm," She goes to follow after Holly when she moves from the counter to get behind it. "Wait, just like that?" She asks in confusion and watches as the owner of the place makes her way to the other side of the main counter and sets her hands down to the table top.

"Just like that." Holly smiles at the young girl.

"Cool." Santana grins, she's proud of herself for getting a job not only without having to sit through some crazy interviewing process, but on the first try. "Thanks." She goes to turn around only to realize she doesn't know when this new job starts for her or the required uniform. "Oh, uh, when do I start?"

"How's tomorrow kid?" Holly suggests as she lifts a cardboard box filled with sugar packets. Santana runs the calendar through her mind, seeing if tomorrow fits her schedule, and she nods because basically every day is good for her. "Good." Holly slides another box across the counter and looks up to the door when the bell rings, signaling customers entering her establishments. "I got Mondays and Wednesdays open for ya after school. But, we'll start ya tomorrow to get trained."

"Umm, I sort of…" Santana stammers and averts her eyes. "Wednesdays I have a thing." She explains vaguely catching Holly's attention. "It's a thing I can't exactly blow off. But, it's only for an hour right after school and then I can come right here." She shifts in her spot, wondering if this will make Miss Holiday revoke her instant hiring and form into an instant firing. Holly just chuckles as she lifts two small cardboard boxed up from behind the counter and goes to carry them into the back.

"It's all good sweet cheeks," She tells Santana who lets out a small sigh of relief. "Just get here when you get here." She says as she leans her back against the swinging door that leads to the kitchen and pauses. "Oh, and we don't got much of a uniform here at Holly's Daze. Just a black shirt and whatever," She looks down at the rather short skirt Linda Lopez's niece has on and she smirks. "I guess whatever on the bottom. Just cover your nether bits little Lopez." She pushes the door and retreats into the kitchen. "See you tomorrow." Holly calls out from the kitchen leaving Santana and the new café's patrons in the dining room area.

* * *

><p>Another Wednesday is just another afternoon spent over at the Knox HealthCare Building in the office of Emma Pillsbury. Santana wonders how her social worker will take the news of her recently acquired job. In a way, she is sort of excited to share the fact that she got herself a job all by herself over at one of the most popular and only café in Knox City. Her aunt sure was happy to hear that she took it upon herself to do something other than lie around the house when she isn't off with Brittany or Quinn.<p>

"I ran into your aunt the other day here in town." Miss Pillsbury reveals as she sorts through some paper work on her desk in a very efficient sort of way. "She told me you got yourself a job over at Holly's." She looks up at Santana and smiles proudly. "I'm so glad to see that you're really motivated to… steerin' yourself in the right direction. "Perhaps it has somethin' to do with the company you've been keepin' here in Knox City." She comments as she jots down a few notes.

"Guess it's just hard to be a rebel in Mayberry." Santana jokes and by Miss Pillsbury's expression she isn't sure whether or not the woman gets her humor.

"No." The woman replies slowly. "I suppose there aren't many things here to knock you off course. Not a lot of options to make bad choices." She agrees and Santana wonders how much trouble a kid could even get into in this place considering she hasn't found any trouble. Well, none like the kind she easily found back home. "Have you looked at those college brochures? Because, if you're serious, we need to get the ball rollin'. There are essays to write and letters of recommendation to get." The last part throws Santana for a loop. She hadn't a clue about letters of recommendation and she isn't quite sure she has any suitable candidates to write a glowing letter on her behalf.

"Oh." Santana sighs and looks down at the pamphlets and brochures she'd stuck in her bag for the meeting. "Actually…" She slips her hand in her bag and tugs at one of the brochures. "I was thinkin' about this school." She hands the paper to Miss Pillsbury who eyes it up as she grabs it. Santana nervously sets her hands to her lap and watches Miss Pillsbury's eyes scan the brochure. "I know I'm probably aiming high and a lot of schools like this are all politics and who you know. But, my grades are good and…"

"Santana," Miss Pillsbury interrupts her ranting and sets the pamphlet down to her desk. "If you don't aim high, you're aimin' at nothin'." She tells the young girl and gives her a smile of encouragement. "So, I'll get all the information we're gonna need to get you through the application process. Until then, keep up the good work."

* * *

><p>After Santana's first official shift at Holly's Daze, Brittany stops by, still in her jumpsuit from the garage. The bell on the door chimes as she walks in, letting her presence be known by the sound, and tugs on the strap of her cheerleading bag as she glances around. She smirks when she spots Santana wiping down an empty table and a tray full of half empty soda cups and baskets with half eaten burgers and fries. Santana looks over her shoulder when she hears the door close and she smiles when her eyes land on Brittany.<p>

"Uh," She stands up straight and blows some stray strands of hair from her face while she shoves the dish rag into her apron. "What are ya doin' here?" She asks and Brittany simply grins wider.

"It's your first day on the job." Brittany points out with a tilt of her head. "I thought we should celebrate." She smiles sweetly and Santana can't help but return the expression, though she does try and fight it. Before Santana replies, she gives Brittany and her outfit a once over with a quirked eyebrow.

"Nice outfit." Santana jokes and when she meets those blue eyes, Brittany is regarding her with the same look.

"I was about to say the same to you." Brittany says and motions with her finger towards Santana's Holly's Daze ensemble. Santana looks down at her outfit which consists of a low cut shirt, surely to bring in tips, her black apron which basically makes her look like she isn't wearing the extremely short cut off shorts she and Aunt Linda picked up when they went to the department store. "Do you _have_ pants on?"

"I don't do pants sweetie." Santana informs her as she pulls the dish rag out of her apron again and turns to wipe down another table. "Got me some daisy dukes though." She tosses a not so innocent smirk over her shoulder as she bends over to get to the far side of the table she's wiping. Brittany clears her throat and tears her eyes from a bent over Santana and points to the back of the shop.

"I'm just gonna," She coughs into her hand and tugs at her bag with the other hand before motioning towards the back of the cafe. "I'm gonna change."

"Well, I'll put in some food for us before Holly shuts off the grill." Santana calls out to her fleeing friend, watching the blonde disappear into the bathroom curiously and a little smug.

"Havin' an afterhours date there little Lopez?" Holly asks when Santana comes to the counter to scroll an order for her and Brittany down to her notepad. Her pen jumps on the page and she jerks her head back.

"Since when is two friends havin' burgers a date?" Santana fires back as she scribbles the rest of their order and slides it across the counter to Holly who lets out an unamused laugh.

"If you say so kid." She placates the girl and spins to slap the ticket on the kitchens counter for the cook. "Last order!" Holly shouts back to the guy who grabs the slip quickly. "Finish up twelve," She nods towards the foursome of adults by the front. "Then you can start cleanin' up." She adds and tosses a dish rag across the counter to Santana who catches it at the last second.

Twenty minutes later, the café is empty of guests and taken up by Brittany and Santana sitting at a two top by the counter. They're nearly done with their burgers and laughing over the old yearbooks Brittany brought along with her to show Santana. Of course Santana comments on how corny it is that Knox City High School has a yearbook that holds every single class from freshman to senior. She tells Brittany that at her school, only the seniors get yearbooks which sort of makes them a little bit more sentimental. But, she adds, that it's kind of cool to have all of the memories from high school accounted for and documented.

"Hold up." Santana blurts out as they turn the page together from the yearbook of Brittany's junior year. She leans forward, bringing her eyes closer to the book to get a better look. "Is that Quinn in the background?" Brittany moves in her chair to get a look at the picture that Santana is talking about and she squints her eyes.

"_Yeah_." She drawls out with a chuckle. She points at the picture of Quinn, sitting on the bleachers behind a group of kids at a football game in all her pink haired glory. "She kind of went… a little out of sorts junior year." Brittany explains in the nicest way possible. Santana nods, because from the looks of junior year Quinn's choppy bright pink locks, she's sure 'crazy' is the term Brittany is avoiding. "She dyed her hair pink."

"I see." Santana's eyes widen at how vivid the pink is in contrast to the dull colors of the Knox City fans wearing the colors of the Panthers.

"And she was hangin' out with this group of girls who, like, graduated a few years ago. Or, at least, they were supposed to graduate a few years ago." Brittany clarifies with a shrug. "They used to hang out under the bleachers with those stoner kids. Called themselves the skunks or the skanks." She makes a face at Santana letting her know she doesn't know the name but that either way it was something very peculiar. Santana laughs because the whole idea of Quinn having gone through some kind of a rebellious streak totally makes sense. It's just something she wouldn't have pictured considering the girl she appears to be now. After taking one more look at the pink haired Quinn, just to make sure she won't ever forget it, she glances up at Brittany who seems to be thinking. "I wonder sometimes if… like, if my mom never… or if I just didn't listen to her if Quinn would have still gone bat shit crazy." Santana's smile fades and she twists her lips as she contemplates the possibilities of this scenario.

"Well, there's no use in wonderin' about things that have already happened." Santana reasons and Brittany gives her a nod, still in some kind of thinking haze. "Besides, you're friends now. Right?" Brittany smiles with a tilt of her head and looks over at Santana. Just then, Holly walks over to their table and they realize they're the only ones left in the café. She hands Santana a set of keys, placing them on the table top.

"Lock up when you both decide to take this date elsewhere." Holly tells her and winks.

"What?" Brittany breathes out and she can feel the heat of embarrassment creep up in her cheeks.

"Please." Holly scoffs with a wave of her hand and heads back through the kitchen doors to leave out the back entrance. When the big metal door that leads out to the back parking lot stops echoing, Santana turns to Brittany who is bashfully trying to hide her smile by sucking in her lips.

"You done?" Santana asks with a nod towards the bit of burger and random fries sitting in the basket in front of Brittany.

"Oh," Brittany glances down. "Yeah." She smiles and picks it up, handing it the waiting hand across from her. "Thanks." She watches from her seat as Santana carries the burger baskets to the back, the kitchen door swinging a few times until she emerges back into the dining room of the café.

"So, what do ya wanna do now?" Santana's walking back towards the table, wiping her hands on a clean rag and looks around the room. Her attention turns to Brittany when she hears rustling coming from the table she was just sitting at.

"I mean, it's no theater." Brittany comments as she pulls out her laptop from her bag. "Or drive-in." She smiles over at Santana who grins back when she sees her hold up a DVD. "But, it can work." She gets up and moves to one of the booths against the wall, shuffles in and pats the spot beside her for Santana to sit. "You've seen this, right?" She quirks an eyebrow as she opens the DVD case and grabs the disc.

"Britt," Santana chuckles. "We used to watch this all the time." She reminds her friend and Brittany nods and grins.

"Just seein' if you remember." Brittany sing songs cutely and slides the movie into the computer.

They sit there comfortably beside one another while the opening of Mean Girls starts. Every few minutes their arms brush up against each other and they shift or cough, neither sure if the other did it on purpose. When Santana laughs at a scene, she can suddenly feel eyes on her and she looks over at Brittany just in time to catch her looking at her chest. At first she decides to look back at the movie and ignore it, but, within a second she vetoes that option, turns back to Brittany whose cheeks are a bit flushed and focus desperate to be on the movie.

"You were totally just checkin' out my tits." Santana spits out matter of factly. She smirks at the way Brittany's eyes flicker across the lap top's screen, to her lap, to Santana and then back to the screen, a smile bashful grin on her lips the entire time. She giggles and grabs at Brittany's hand when she tries to hide her face. "It's fine. They are kinda awesome." She says with open arms, an offer for Brittany to take this moment to ogle her goodies. Brittany laughs and shakes her head at her friend's straightforwardness, but not quite giving in to the suggestion.

The silence from Brittany falls over the both of them and Santana gives up on trying to coax her friend to check out her rack. Instead, they each try to get sucked back into the movie. Santana sighs and crosses her arms comfortably over her chest and tilts her head as she watches the characters on screen talk about how on Wednesdays they wear pink. Out of the corner of her eye she watches Brittany's hands twisting and turning on her lap and she smiles softly to herself.

She reaches over and places her hand over Brittany's, letting her fingers tickle the blonde's thigh. Brittany lets out a shaky breath, trying not to pay too much attention to the skin on skin contact. Santana smirks at the effect she's having on Brittany's body and she shuffles a little closer until she is close enough to turn and press her lips to a bare shoulder.

Brittany grins over at her and her eyes flicker down to her lips. Santana bites her bottom lip and leans forward, tilting her head to the side before pressing a kiss to Brittany who pushes into it. The movie becomes background noise as their lips dance against each other and tongue tastes tongue. Santana's hands become adventurous and as her body turns towards Brittany's she sets her hand on her leg.

Her hand moves up Brittany's bare leg, letting her fingers tickle the inside as she gently touches her. When she reaches the hem of those very short cut offs, the blonde's legs seem to be in a war with the feeling and her brain. It's when Santana moves her hand to the button of her shorts that Brittany's hand comes down to stop her.

"Wait." Brittany says breathlessly. "Just…" Santana's lips still against Brittany's neck and she opens her eyes.

"Brittany." Santana whispers against her skin and slides her hand from the bottom of the shorts to up and just under Brittany's shirt, causing the blonde to jump in her seat and grab at her wrist, stilling her.

"Santana," Brittany says firmly and pulls back from the girl kissing at her neck. "I'm not…" Santana sighs and drops her hand to Brittany's grip and leans away to look up at her. "I like you." She tells her with a soft smile.

"Yeah." Santana nods and goes to move her hand to Brittany's body again, but she is stopped.

"No." Brittany dodges Santana's lips. "I don't wanna… um…" She looks at her fingers that are playing with a lock of Santana's hair and clears her throat. "I'm not goin' to have sex with you." She says straightforwardly and Santana's face slowly falls and her hand slides from Brittany's leg to her own lap.

"Britt, I…" Santana goes to speak but Brittany continues.

"I just…" She pauses and drops the locks of hair she'd been toying with. "I'm not havin' sex with you here in a café, in a booth." Her eyes nervously look to the two brown ones staring curiously back at her. She isn't sure if she is supposed to go back to kissing Santana because that part was nice or if she is supposed to turn back to watch the movie.

Setting, time, place. Those things have never exactly been an issue for Santana when it came to sex. It was a here and now sort of deal back home. If she felt it, she did it. But as she smiles in understanding and nods, she wonders if she was really just about to try and have sex with Brittany. She wonders if Brittany didn't stop them, if she would have actually had sex with Brittany in a booth at Holly's Daze after hours.

Instead of pondering the possibilities any longer, she decides to get lost in the movie she's seen about a million times since she was ten. Maybe getting sucked into the world of imagination is okay every once in a while because the real world can be so damn confusing and unpredictable.

* * *

><p>It's Monday, which means Holly and her band, the New Directions, comes to practice for the monthly open mic night at the café. It's kind of awkward because one of the band members is actually her Spanish teacher and apparently her social worker's fiancé and he told Santana it's cool if she calls him Will when he's 'jammin''. The other two, besides Holly, are pretty okay she figures. The drummer guy kind of reminds her of Uncle Jesse from Full House, so he's not bad to look at and the chick who sings and wave around a tambourine turns out to be April, the owner that gay bar just outside of town.<p>

After an hour of playing, the live music festival comes to a close and the band starts packing up. Santana hears them talk about the open mic night and how they should try and get a gig playing at one of the many Knox City Annual fairs always going on. Holly locks the door after Will, April and the drummer step out, leaving her little shop quiet. She makes her way over to where they'd been practicing and grabs her guitar. She sits down on a stool and starts strumming away, nothing in particular but it still sounds nice.

Santana, having been cleaning up in the kitchen, comes back out and begins to wipe down the tables and sets the chairs up on top of them. She works while Holly plays, not even realizing she's humming along to a familiar tune.

"You got a good voice on ya kid." Holly points out after she stops playing. Santana shrugs and hits one of the tables with the wet rag in her hand. "But, you already know that." She answers after a beat when the young girl doesn't respond, just shrugs and rolls her eyes as she moves to the counter to give it a good wipe down. "You _used_ to sing though, right? Must've stopped for a reason." She continues as she sets her guitar down beside her to study her newest employee. "Good reason?" Santana's lips twist in thought.

"I just..." She sighs and turns to give her boss a quick look. "I used to sing with my uncle all the time when I was..." She stops herself from saying 'kid' because she knows Holly is just going to make a stink about how she's still a kid. "Even after... I, uh, I was actually in my school's glee club back home." She waves her hand as if it's not much to share.

"Must've been pretty good to be in the glee club." Holly says and pushes herself up from her stool to walk over to the counter. Santana shrugs as she moves sugar caddies and ketchups to clean properly. "So, why'd you stop?"

"I guess I felt like it didn't work anymore." Santana replies quietly. When Holly doesn't respond, she continues. "My uncle always said that music helps everything and anything. That, even if someone has nothing they could have almost everything if they had music in their hearts." She moves along the counter with the rag as she speaks. "He once told me that music helped him 'get' love. I was really young so I never really understood what he meant." She quirks an eyebrow at herself and shoves the dishrag into her apron. "And I never got the chance to ask." She jams her hands into her back pockets and walks away from the counter and to the door to draw the shades. Holly studies her newest employee and contemplates the idea of how music mixes with love.

"Music can open your eyes." Holly breaks their silence after a few seconds and it catches Santana's off guard. "One song can remind you of a feeling you once had, but maybe you forgot. A song can even bring on feelings you never even knew you had." She grins to herself as she truly listens to herself, agreeing with each of her own words. "The trick to 'gettin'' love from music is listenin' to a song and havin' that one person come to your mind. All those songs about love and that feelin' in your gut makes this person pop into your brain every time." Santana remains quiet. "And when you _really_ 'get' it, is when you listen to one of those songs _with_ that person. Then, suddenly," She quirks an eyebrow and nods. "You 'get' it. That, sweet cheeks, is what your uncle meant."

"That sounds exhausting." Santana huffs, but Holly can tell that she is simply acting disinterested.

"My daddy used to tell me that love should be like breathin' air; easy and always there. But, it's not like that." Holly admits with a shrug of her shoulders. "I guess in a way, that's kind of what makes it so amazing. Love is like bein' underwater when you need to breathe. You're swimmin' to the surface, and you can see it but it feels like you're never gonna get there. But when you do, you take this big gulp of air and it hurts and your coughin' or chokin', sometimes both. Most of all though, it feels so good. That first breath is so friggin' good and each one after is better and better. That's love." She finishes and nods her head towards the door that lets out a chime before Santana can even turn around to see who it is, but she's already smiling.

Like at the end of most of her shifts at Holly's Daze, Santana is greeted by the company of one Brittany Pierce. Also like usual, Holly makes herself scarce and heads to the back office to do some paper work for the next day. Santana stands behind the counter fixing sugar caddies and restocking ketchup packets for to go orders while Brittany leans over from the other side of the counter. They send one another a glance here and there, letting their eyes linger on lips and bashful smirks.

"Wanna split a shake?" Brittany asks, leaning even further over the counter so that she can reach out and tug affectionately at a stray strand of dark hair.

Santana playfully bats her hand away and flicks her hair from her face before leaning forward and giving Brittany a quick peck on the lips. When she pulls back, she notices Brittany's eyes flicker towards the door Holly randomly swings through every now and again.

"Oh, umm." Santana clears her throat realizing she'd nearly forgotten to pull down the shades and that they aren't in the comfort or privacy of either of their rooms. Anyone is bound to walk by and see them through the huge open windows of Holly's Daze. But, her doubt fades when she finds Brittany smiling back at her, still leaning towards her on the counter top. "_I_ just spent the past half hour cleanin' the blenders without injuring myself." She holds up her fingers, free of cuts, proudly. "No dice." She chuckles.

"So, how 'bout I get Carmel's?" Brittany suggests with an arched eyebrow.

"That sounds delicious." Santana hums in approval and rests her forearms to the counter leaving a small amount of space between them.

"_Oh_?" Brittany reaches out and pokes Santana's side. "Does it?" She continues to wriggle her finger into Santana's side, even though it's being swatted at, and doesn't give up until she gets a giggle.

"Britt!" Santana yelps finally having to jump back away from the counter top to get away from the tickling.

And when Brittany goes to get shakes a few moments later the door opens again and of course Santana thinks its Brittany.

"Britt," Santana laughs. "You're seriously so gonna get it…" But, is stopped in her tracks and her words and her smile slowly fades as she sees it is Mrs. Pierce at the door.

Mrs. Pierce looks around the café and shakes her head. Slowly, she walks in further, closer towards Santana.

"We're closed." Santana tells her. Mrs. Pierce's eyes land on her and she smirks.

"You know why I'm here." She says. "And it's not for some latte or greasy burger. I'm here about my daughter." Her voice is threatening. "I don't know what your aim really is, but whatever it is, I know I don't like it."

"What?"

"Don't play dumb Santana, you and I both know you can't pull that off." She gives the place a once over, unimpressed and tugs on the strap of her bag. "I know that whatever I say to Brittany, she's just going to keep doin' what she's been doin'. But, I am telling you that if you don't stop there will be consequences."

"I think you've got the wrong…"

"Don't test me little girl. I'll have you sent away somewhere far worse than Knox City, Texas before you can snap your fingers. You're goin' to stay away from Brittany."

"Doesn't mean she'll stay away from me."

"You'll make sure she does. You're a clever girl, you'll think of somethin'."

"If you think I got sent here by doin' what I was told, you're very mistaken Mrs. Mayor."

"I don't know who you think you are, but 'round here children respect their elders."

"Well, I'm not from around here." Santana reminds her as she crosses her arms over her chest and cocks out a hip. "Where I come from, respect is earned when it's reciprocated."

"Let me put it in terms you'll understand then." Mrs. Pierce steps towards her. "You're nothin'. You're a child; selfish and irresponsible." She raises her head as though too noble to look down at Santana's level. "Careless and reckless."

"You don't know anything." Santana defends, but even she is let down by her own lack of aggression.

"I know you're not good enough to be around my daughter." The mayor spits back.

"We're friends." Mrs. Pierce laughs.

"You and Brittany aren't _anythin'_ and you'll never _be anythin'_." She sneers at the young girl before her. "Wanna know why?" She smirks. "Your own parents tossed you away because _they_ couldn't even deal with you. You're common trash. A girl like you comes with baggage, the kind of baggage I don't want Brittany to have to carry for you. And baggage that I don't ever want her to have to carry for herself." A door swinging on a hinge catches both of their attention and the turn to find Holly Holiday standing in the doorway at the kitchen.

"Annie." Holly greets, though, her tone is far from happy or even truly polite. "Kitchen's closed." She explains with a quick motion of her hand to the room behind her before she crosses her arms over her chest.

"I just came to have a little chat with Santana." The mayor tells her with a curt smile.

"I see." Holly nods and moves forward, all the while inspecting the tension in the air between the neighbors. "Well, I need Santana in the back for inventory." She shares and hands a folded piece of paper she pulls from her pocket over to Santana.

"We can finish this later." Mrs. Pierce says, moving her stare back to the teenager.

"I think you're finished now." Holly steps in to block the mayor's line of vision to Santana. "You should go."

"Very well." Annie turns on her heels and leaves, head held up high.

Holly has the door closed and locked almost before the mayor is even fully out onto the sidewalk. She closes the shades and lets out a sigh before turning around. Santana is staring at the paper, no unfolded, and then looks up at Holly.

"This is a photocopy of the crossword puzzle from today's paper." Santana informs her boss as she shakes the paper at her. Holly smirks and grabs the paper as she brushes by her young employee.

"Well, I can't get thirty-seven down." She explains in a light tone. "What's a five letter word for hollow?" At first Santana thinks for the answer, but then goes back to what just transpired. Holly stops at the kitchen door when she realizes there are no tiny footsteps behind her. "Hey, little Lopez." She calls out to Santana. "Pay no mind to that Annie Pierce. She's a bad egg."

Except Santana can do anything but pay no mind to Annie Pierce. The woman basically told her everything that she already knows and everything that has been plaguing her mind she decided to let go and give in to this… whatever this is.

By the time Brittany gets back to Holly's Daze, large milkshake in hand, she finds Santana leaning against the brick wall of the building obviously waiting on her. She parks her truck and hops out, smiling as she walks around the front of the vehicle and towards Santana. The sound of feet scuff across pavement is what draws Santana's attention to her. Brittany slows down when she notices a shimmer in the other girl's eyes.

"I got strawberry." Brittany announces, lifting the cup in her hand and tries not to let her smile waver. Santana looks down as she pushes herself from the wall of the building and clears her throat. When she glances back up at Brittany, the blonde is certain that that shimmer she noticed is in fact tears. Only, she has no idea why they are there. "What's wrong?" She hesitantly asks because she has an inkling she's not going to like the answer very much.

"I don't wanna do this anymore." Santana tells her in a calm and soft voice. Brittany's face falls and her hand holding the shake falls to her side.

"Do what?" Brittany's feet shift against the pavement, but she can't hear the noise is makes over the beating of her heart as she nervously awaits a response. Santana sighs and half rolls her eyes so that she is looking up at the sky and shakes her head subtly.

"Like, kissing you is fun." She starts and crosses her arms over her chest. "But…" She kicks at the ground and clears her throat. "I mean, it's _not_ like I'm makin' out with you 'cause I'm _in love_ with you." She spits out, finally lifting her eyes up to Brittany who is staring at her in disbelief and pain.

"Wait," Brittany runs her hand over her face and sets the strawberry shake down on the cement window sill. "_What happened_? What's goin' on?" She asks, her brain too frazzled from this sudden turn of events. Santana jams her hands into her zip up hoodie and bites on the insides of her cheeks, preparing herself for the things she is about to say.

"_Brittany_," She says her name in a condescending way which causes Brittany's head to jerk back. "Did you _really_ think that there was somethin' goin' on here?" She motions with her hand in her pocket between the two of them to emphasize her point and smirks in an apologetic way when Brittany's lips part.

"You're…" Brittany breathes out and shakes her head. "If this is you tryin' to push me away to protect me, please stop." She begs and takes a step towards Santana, but Santana steps away.

"You're being ridiculous." Santana laughs only Brittany can't find the humor in this moment. "Actually, no. _You're_ ridiculous."

"That's just mean." Brittany says, her voice shaky and saddened by this confrontation. "Why are you doin' this?" She sniffles as the beginnings of tears form in the back of her eyes. "Is this because of the… the other night. 'Cause we didn't…"

"You don't get it." Santana tells her with force. "I… I _don't_ wanna be with you." She says in exasperation. "I'm leaving at the end of the school year anyway, so what the hell would be the point even _if_ I did?" She challenges an obvious question to the situation,_ if_ there were a situation of course.

"What's wrong with livin' in the now?" Brittany counters as she wipes a single tear that's sliding down her cheek. "I know you're leavin'." She looks down at the ground because looking at Santana hurts too much right now. "Doesn't mean it can't..."

"I don't want it to." Santana shouts and raises her hands in the air as if the gesture will get her point across. Brittany stumbles back a step at the volume of the voice being used towards her and glances up at Santana with wide eyes. "You think everything is sunshine and rainbows. Life _sucks_." She spits out and takes a challenging step towards Brittany. "The world, it's horrible. All _you_ know is this _stupid _town and the ten people who live in it. You act like you're all knowing. Well, _you know nothing_." Brittany pouts at her, lower lip quivering and her eyes filled to the brim with tears.

"Why do you have to make everythin' sound so sad?" She whimpers and sniffles some more, wiping her eyes quickly not wanting to give Santana the satisfaction of getting tears. Santana shoves her hands back into the pockets of her hoodie and steps that last step to Brittany so they are barely a breath apart.

"The saddest thing you know is losing a championship." Santana tells her in a softer but still intimidating tone. "That in itself is sad." And with that, Santana feels a warm sting on her cheek.

Her eyes widen and her jaw drops. Brittany has just slapped her. When she looks up at her, she finds it hard not to notice the way her blue eyes glisten fiercely under the moonlight. Even more so, she can see clearly that Brittany is not regretful of her action. The blonde's chin quivers as she stares back at Santana, hurt written all over her face.

"Maybe you're right." Brittany speaks, finally breaking the silence that has fallen after the echo of skin slapping skin has faded.

Santana has to tear her eyes from Brittany's face, unable to see the way her lower lip twitches and chin flutters as she tries to control her emotions. By looking to the ground, she watches Brittany's feet shuffle away from her and then turn in the other direction. When she looks back up, Brittany is no longer in front of her but walking around the front of her car.

"Enjoy the shake." Is the last thing that Brittany calls out before the roar of her truck takes over the silence around them and drives off into the darkness.

Santana stands there and stares down Main Street until the backlights of Brittany's powder blue truck vanish around a corner. She presses her lips together, trying to will away the quiver in her chin but it's of no use. She sighs out a tiny whimper as she opens her eyes wide and wipes a tear before it trails down her face. Clearing her throat, she steps over to the strawberry milkshake that is melting away on the cement window sill of Holly's Daze and tosses it into the garbage can on the curb.

With a stuttering breath, she pulls her cell phone from her bag and flips it open. There aren't many people for her to call for help seeing as her contacts only run about four names long. Two of them she can't call and one of them is the police who she most definitely doesn't need. With only one person left, she scrolls down to the name and tentatively presses the call button.

"Umm," She hums into the phone, trying to close her throat so she doesn't cry into it. "Do you think you could pick me up from work?"

Fifteen minutes later, Quinn's dirty brown pickup truck pulls up in front of Holly's Daze. Santana adjusts her bag on her shoulder as she walks on over to the passenger side door, happy for those fifteen minutes she had to herself to sort things out. Quinn smiles kindly to her when she hops into the seat and doesn't ask her what's going on. Well, at least not at first.

The first five minutes or so, maybe less, are relatively quiet. Quinn hums along with the radio that is at a very low volume, while Santana stares out the window at the rustic, desert like scenery passing her by. She wonders what Brittany was thinking on her drive home. She wonders if Brittany thought about coming back to pick her up, knowing that she was her ride home. She wonders if Brittany could see right through her and that she didn't mean anything she had said to her. She wonders if this pain in her chest from making Brittany cry will ever go away.

"So?" Quinn finally interrupts their silence which Santana had simply been waiting for. She turns towards her friend who is keeping an eye on the road. "I thought Brittany was bringin' you home." Santana's eyes flicker away from Quinn when those inquisitive hazel ones veer from the road and in her direction.

"Oh." Santana lets out which is just a ploy to give herself a few more seconds to come up with a believable response. "Umm, she uh, had somethin'." She waves her hand, hoping it will also wave away the topic of conversation, but she knows it won't.

"Oh, okay." Quinn nods as she reaches for the knob on the radio and flicks it all the way to the left until it clicks, leaving the cabin of the truck silent. "Now, how 'bout you tell me what really happened." She says and sends Santana that knowing look.

Santana sighs loudly and her shoulders slump. For a few moments, she just watches the way her fingers twirl the string of her hoodie around and around, wondering if the quiet in the truck will erase the conversation. It's probably a conversation with Quinn that is long overdue, especially taking into consideration all of the things her friend had said to her before New Years. As she thinks of how to explain recent happenings to Quinn she nibbles on the end of the string to the hood of her zip up.

"_Brittany_ and _I_ have been," Santana pauses for a moment, trying to decipher in her mind exactly what it is that she and Brittany have even been doing. "We've been… kissing." She decides on, because truth of the matter is, that's pretty much the extent of the physical that they have been participating in. She opts to leave out anything further than that, which would be anything that falls into the 'emotional' category. "A _lot_ of kissing." She adds and Quinn's smile falters which she is sure has somewhat to do with the tone she is using.

"_But_?" Quinn drawls out as she pulls onto the South Service Road and Santana sighs.

"_But_," She starts. "I _don't know_." She huffs and shakes her head as she drops the draw string of her sweatshirt. "I know she wants things… and I… I can't give 'em to her." She mutters and leans her elbow on the door against the closed window.

"Why _can't_ you?" Quinn asks, not at all understanding why her friend sounds so defeated with something that seems so obvious to her.

"Because," Santana rests her head against the window and closes her eyes. "She's too good for me." Quinn laughs at this causing Santana to lift her head from the window.

"You're just afraid." Quinn informs her as though it's a simple fix to all the world's problems. Santana stares at her with a furrowed brow.

"I am not." She defends, but it's hardly believable.

"Yes. You are." Quinn replies with a firm nod. "I think you're just afraid to admit that Miss Brittany Pierce is _exactly _what you need. She's _not_ 'too good' for you." She tells her friend in a soft voice and sends her a quick glance. "You're scared she's _perfect_ for you." She adds as she pulls into the Lopez driveway and throws the truck into park.

"Why do you even care?" Santana challenges.

"What?" Quinn's brow furrows and tilts her head to the side.

"Why do you care so much about this? About me? I mean, what's in it for you?" She asks and Quinn studies her for a moment until she realizes that Santana is serious. She shifts herself in the driver's seat so she can face Santana and give her a good hard look.

"I… I didn't know I needed a _reason_ to help a friend." Quinn sighs as she watches her words affect Santana. "I just… I want you to be happy and…" She shakes her head and runs her fingers through her hair.

"So, that's it? You want me to be happy?" Santana questions because she finds this reason to be farfetched. Quinn shrugs her shoulders and nods.

"Yeah, sometimes people do things for each other without wantin' somethin' in return. It's the beauty of friendship." She explains with ease but Santana is still staring at her bewildered. "You're lucky." Quinn blurts out when Santana doesn't respond. "She loves you, Brittany _loves _you. So, stop being such a pussy and love her back, because…" Santana's eyes widen a bit while Quinn clenches and unclenches her fists in frustration at feeling at a loss for words. "'Cause, you already do. You've loved her for years and you probably didn't even know it." Quinn points out in a gentle way a mother would explain something to their scared little child.

"_She_… no, I don't." She huffs with a roll of her eyes and tries to find something else to peak her interest on the side of her aunt's driveway. Quinn chuckles and shakes her head from side to side as she glances over at Santana who is scowling back at her. "I _do not_." She reiterates.

"Ya know, for someone who's so _bad ass_, you're all kinds of fucked up when it comes to relationships. You say you don't care, but you definitely do. I just don't know why exactly." Quinn begins in what Santana can only assume is going to be a rant. "I mean, your parents splittin' up seriously did some damage on your emotional psyche. But, I find it hard to believe that's all there is to it. I think some girl royally ripped your heart out or there is some tremendous love story that didn't have a happy ending somewhere in your life." She continues while Santana looks away as she does when her parents used to berate her when she started acting out. "You weren't always like this. I know we're not kids anymore and whatever." She waves her hand and sighs in frustration. "Someone had to have gotten in there before you closed up shop and threw away the key." She turns her attention from her hands resting on her steering wheel and looks over at Santana who appears to have been listening as she seems in thought. "So what is it? Why can't you just admit that you have feelins' for Britt and acknowledge her feelins' for you? What's the problem?"

Santana ponders this idea. She wonders how long she has been locked away behind this set of metaphorical iron doors. Has she seriously hidden herself away from any and every form of human relationship that spirals further than friendship?

"You're right ya know." Santana breaks the silence. "There was a girl once." Her eyes are trained on everything else but those eyes staring back at her in question and curiosity. "I had always though she was the prettiest girl I had ever laid eyes on." She half smiles and eyes fall to her lap. "I was _always_ tryin' to impress her." A light chuckle leaves her lips and she shakes her head at herself.

"So… what happened?" Quinn asks with intrigue and leans her forearms to the steering wheel, afraid to hear not anything that her friend might whisper out. Santana sucks her lips in, sits up straight and looks out the windshield.

"It was the typical story." She chances a glance over at her friend. Just a quick flicker of her eyes, as though to make sure she still had an audience of one. "She was the girl from the picture perfect place, family and I was just the girl from The Heights. We weren't exactly in close proximity which also makes it hard." She lets go of the few rocks and pebbles she'd been playing with, wipes her hand on her jeans and then tucks a lock of hair behind her ear. "I honestly didn't even know if she felt anything like that towards me to be honest. I was sure it was all a big story I had made up in my mind." Santana clears her throat and laughs at herself, trying to free the air around them of tension and sadness. She shrugs and after a few moments of silence, she turns her head to look at Quinn.

"Do you still talk to this girl?" Her head tilts to the side, but there is something in the way her eyes shimmer under the nearly setting sun that makes Santana feel that she doesn't even have to continue with this tale of 'once upon a time'. Santana chuckles and rubs her hands together.

"We do." Santana smiles one of those few but very genuine smiles.

"Okay, so, then tell her." Quinn leans over and nudges her shoulder into Santana's, but her friend just gives a deflated look.

"Yeah, I don't think so." She states flatly.

"Well, why not?" Quinn questions, her brow furrows with a desperate need for this story to take another direction. "I mean, do you think she's still the prettiest girl?" She asks and Santana shrugs while she nods. "Do you still try and impress her?" Santana laughs. It's one of those hearty laughs where people throw their head back.

"Sometimes." She admits quietly after her amusement subsides.

"So," Quinn shakes her head in confusion. "Then what's the problem?" Santana takes a deep breath, clenches her jaw and lets it out through her nose. Her lips twist and then she turns her attention back out to the scenery in front of them.

"She's… the girl next door." Santana admits and glances in the direction of the Pierce house. Quinn stares at her friend looking longingly out the window and rolls her eyes. Sometimes, she thinks, Santana can be plain stupid.

"You _really_ have no clue, do you?" Quinn throws a slap to Santana's shoulder, catching her attention as she fully turns towards her.

"Umm, ouch." Santana reaches up and rubs where Quinn's just hit her.

"She's been buildin' this world of amazin' all these years and it wasn't until _you_ showed up that I realized who she was buildin' it for. It's like, she set up this awesome fort and has been waitin' for you to come inside and check it out." Santana quirks an eyebrow and fights a smirk while Quinn shakes her head at herself realizing how her words just came out. "Okay, maybe that sounded a lot dirtier than I had intended, but, I think you get what I'm sayin' here. She's been waitin' for you and I know it sounds silly, but on account of this bein' Brittany we're talkin' about, it makes perfect sense. It's like she's been stuck in this tower, makin' the best with what she has 'cause it's all she's ever known, but hoped… no, knew there was always somethin' better. You're what she has been waitin' for." She watches the way Santana's head hangs and her chin hovers over her chest. "The only question left is, are you ready?" She lets the questions hang in the air until Santana finally looks up at her. "Ready to catch the girl who has been fallin' in love with you over and over again since you rode into town. Probably even before that."

"It's so much more complicated than that, Quinn." Santana tells her after a minute passes over them. "Mrs. Pierce came in to Holly's tonight." She starts and Quinn's fire dims a bit at this bit of information. "And, she's right. I'm not… I'm not the kind of person who should be in her daughter's life. She would know Brittany better than anyone."

"Pshh." Quinn spits out and leans back into her seat. "Please. She doesn't know Brittany at all. You know who knows Brittany the best?" She asks, giving a second for Santana to hear the question. "Brittany. Brittany knows Brittany better than anyone. And it seems to me she knows exactly what she wants _and_ what she needs." Santana looks away and Quinn can tell that all of this talking is not going to bring them anywhere. So, with a sigh she shakes her head. "You're gonna do what you're gonna do though, right?"

* * *

><p>Santana was pretty surprised when Brittany picked her up for school the day after that night at Holly's. She was sure she was going to have to ask Aunt Linda for a ride and then be forced to either make something up or actually tell her aunt what had happened between her and the girl next door. Luckily, she didn't have to do either.<p>

What she has had to do is survive the uncomfortable silence that plagued the cabin of the powder blue pickup truck every day since that dreadful night of melted milkshakes and an ambush slap. Sure, she figures, the slap was pretty warranted all things considered. All she has been doing these past two months is push and pull Brittany in different directions until she walks away leaving them both dizzy and confused. At least today Brittany regarded her with a 'good mornin' rather than just turn on the radio and ignore her for the entire trip to school.

What has been sort of interesting about this turn of events is that it seems Brittany has fallen back into her routine from before Santana arrived. The entire week when they get to school, Brittany hops out of the truck almost before she even shuts it off and makes her way towards the jocks and the cheerleaders hanging out over by the bike rack that no one uses. She meshes in well with them because, well, she's a cheerleader, and there's something about Brittany Pierce that everyone loves. Even the stoners from under the bleachers and the nerds from the AV club love Brittany.

Santana doesn't need to be a genius to understand why this little town has such big Brittany supporters and fans. The girl is the nicest person in Knox City High School. She's kind and thoughtful and friendly and she's super popular. She understands the want to be around a girl like Brittany, because she also has that want. For her though, it's more of a need that over rides her want and it's strange and she doesn't know what that means.

So, instead of trying to figure out the inner workings of her emotional capacity and the definitions behind each feelings, she jumps out of the powder blue pickup truck and makes her way to the front doors of Knox City High School. The hallways are crowded as usual, with teachers talking amongst themselves outside of the office and by their classrooms. Kids are goofing around talking about taking the state title next year, which seems odd considering this year isn't even over.

"Hey." Quinn's voice comes from out of nowhere and Santana looks to her right when she feels the familiar bump of a shoulder next to her.

"Hey." Santana forces a tight lipped, but friendly, smile as they make their way through the halls.

"Have you gotten anywhere?" Quinn asks and then gives a freshman her trusty cheerleader scowl which instantly makes him move out of their way. She may not be HBIC, but she still has some clout while wearing that uniform.

"I got a 'good mornin'' today." Santana replies as she adjusts the books in her arms and furrows her brow when she notices a crowd of people up ahead.

"I wonder what's goin' on over there." Quinn wonders and motions towards the throng of students who seem to be grouped around a set of lockers. Upon further inspection, Santana realizes that her locker is among the ten that are being surrounded and she groans.

"Figures." She mutters to herself. She's not a big fan of having to force through a bunch of annoying teenagers to get to her locker. Back at her old school no one ever got in her way when she was going to her locker. Then again, she only went to her locker to retrieve a flask or a bottle or something that was most definitely not on her back to school list.

"Come on." Quinn pulls on her arm and leads the way towards the small party of students.

Quinn pushes through two jocks with Santana tugged tightly to her side as she gets through a gap. Santana stumbles into her when she stops abruptly and turns to face her, an undecipherable expression on her face. Her eyes flicker between Santana's, her face flushed and her lips parted. A few of the kids standing around the lockers turn to them, some hide their smirks while others openly stare with grins plastered on their faces.

When she looks past Quinn she sees it. It's there in all its glory in solid red. Her brow furrows and she steps forward, slipping from her friend's loose grasp on her arm. She doesn't stop until she is fully removed from the pack of teens standing around the lockers, or her locker to be more precise. She steps a bit closer until she can reach out her hand and run her finger over the writing and rubs the substance between her fingers.

"Lipstick." She mumbles to herself and subtly shakes her head.

If she wasn't so angry, she'd have the time to actually be impressed with the doer of this deed. Though, she is pretty sure she knows who exactly is behind this graffiti of her locker. Only two people come to mind as she looks back up and reads the red lipstick written 'lesbo' down her locker door. She can hear the whispers and the out in the open discussions and questions the kids behind her are tossing back and forth.

The 'I didn't know she was gay' and the 'why are all the hot chicks dykes'. They are giggling and she hears a girl say that she probably just hooks up with girls to get guys attention and she rolls her eyes. Then there are the few that make her blood run hot and cold, these are the ones that have Brittany's name in them and these are the comments and questions that makes her turn on her heels and face her fellow students.

She opens her mouth to say something, anything. Santana desperately searches for something in her vicious vicious word thesaurus only nothing comes out. It's only when a flash of blonde sweeps in front of her that the group of teenagers looking at her averts to the girl standing between her and them. She steps back as Brittany takes a stand in front of her and crosses her arms.

"Show's over." Brittany tells the crowd whose stares flit from her to Santana and the defaced locker behind her. "Get out of here." She demands in a louder than usual Brittany tone, something a lot fiercer than anyone is used to hearing and it causes the student body cluttered around the lockers to disperse and then the bell rings.

Santana looks down at the ground when Brittany turns towards her. She sees Quinn's feet shuffle closer to them until she is standing beside Brittany and Santana looks over her shoulder back at her locker before turning back to face them. Quinn looks apologetically at her while Brittany sadly hangs her head and goes to walk away. Santana goes to say something, anything. Only nothing comes out.

Her eyes follow the retreating figure of the blonde cheerleading girl next door down the hall. When Brittany vanishes around a corner, Santana finds a group of jocks leaning against a set of lockers down the hall staring back at her with smirks and grins on their faces. Finn Hudson sends her a knowing look and holds his hand out for David Karofsky who gives him a low high five before they make their way to class.

"Well," Quinn sighs when Santana turns back to her 'lesbo' locker. "At least you know Brittany still cares about you." Quinn reasons and sadly smiles as she watches her friend put in her locker combination.

The morning's events carry on through the day with whispers during classes and notes being passed around her with giggles and notes being thrown at her with harsh words of disapproval. She thinks back to the conversation she'd had with the mayor that night at Holly's and the baggage Brittany's mother was referring to. Santana didn't quite understand exactly what she meant by that, at least not until this morning.

It wasn't the baggage of her juvenile police records. It wasn't even the fact that she has experimented with legal and illegal substances. The baggage that Mayor Pierce was talking about was more of a label and the baggage that comes with that. Regardless of the details of their sordid relationship or whatever it was that was going on between her and Brittany, Annie Pierce is fearful of the guilty by association aspect of it all.

Brittany being friends with Santana, a teenage lesbian, would prove to come with the effects of having such an acquaintance. The talk of the town, whether or not true, would muddy the pristine reputation of the high school's captain of the cheerleading squad with vandalized lockers and whispers and bullying. Things that Annie Pierce was not about to let happen to her daughter and things that Santana was desperate to protect her friend from as well.

When lunch time comes, it's only Quinn that comes to her locker to meet up. She had wondered throughout the first couple of classes if because of what happened in the morning would get Brittany to pull the wall of silence down and be there for her. But, she didn't really expect much considering the horrible things she had said to Brittany the other night and how mean she was. It's not unforgivable, but she knows the need for space and time as much as anyone. She's still taking that space and time with her brother, mother and father since she got into town.

"Hey Br…" Tina's call out to Brittany gets cut off by herself when she notices Brittany bypass their table and head towards the group of jocks and cheerleaders. She looks to Kurt who is sitting across from her with a furrowed brow. He shrugs, rolls his eyes in a way of saying 'whatever' and sets his bag beside him. "All week." She mutters to herself before returning back to her lunch.

"You know," Quinn starts as she and Santana make their way to the bench table Tina and Kurt are sitting at. "You're bein' an idiot." She tells her friend flat out getting a huff in response.

"You don't understand." Santana vaguely explains and is a bit startled when Quinn spins around to come face to face with her.

"You're Santana Lopez." Quinn states and jabs her finger to her friend's shoulder. Santana glances down at the offending digit, but holds her ground when it pokes her again. "You're kind of a bad ass, but you're also inexplicably protective over two important things." She holds her two fingers up and locks eyes with Santana. "The first is your heart." She motions towards Santana's chest and then glances over her shoulder for a quick second. "And I think you already know what the second one is." Santana looks over Quinn's shoulder to where that second thing is, but is quick to avert her eyes to knowing hazel ones.

"Maybe when we were kids." Santana defends but Quinn simply laughs at her.

"You would never have done what you're doin' now when we were kids." Quinn reminds her. "And since when do you do what people tell you to do?" She arches an eyebrow. "If little you met," Quinn pauses and looks her friend up and down. "Less little you. Little you would kick your now ass to back then for listenin' to anyone tellin' you how to live." She explains and gets an amused by perplexed look from Santana.

"You're tellin' me what to do." Santana points out.

"Well, I'm tryin' to tell ya to listen to yourself." Quinn explains softly. "You're only hurtin' her."

"That's what I'm tryin' not to do." Santana tells her and sends a quick glance over in Brittany's direction. "You were there with me this morning, Quinn. My locker." She reminds the blonde. "Can you imagine if Brittany's locker was defaced like that? That'd kill her." Quinn stares long and hard at Santana before she decides to weigh in.

"If Brittany gave a rat's ass about what people said or thought about her, she wouldn't be Brittany." Quinn says with a small hint of a smile. "You know that sayin', 'dance like nobody's watchin'?" Santana furrows her brow but nods, because she has heard this before. "That's how she lives. She doesn't care about the talks or the whispers." She shrugs her shoulders and turns so she is standing shoulder to shoulder with Santana and looks ahead where Brittany is sitting with the group of cheerleaders across the way.

"Maybe _I_ am." Santana admits in a low voice which garners a look from Quinn. "I don't want her life to be hell here."

"Sometimes Lopez, you just gotta turn up the music and drown all that other stuff out. Just shut up and dance." Quinn tells her as she hooks her arm through Santana's and leads them over to the bench where Kurt and Tina are sitting.

When night time comes, Santana can't seem to find sleep. She tosses one way only to turn to the other, kicks her feet out from under her covers, only to tuck her legs up to her chest, once again hiding them under the blanket. She grunts, groans and moans out in displeasure before sighing and glancing over at the clock. It's only been a few hours since she'd last seen Brittany since she'd dropped her off after school. It's been days since she brushed her off and confused the hell out of the both of them.

She thought that she was doing right by Brittany, listening to Mrs. Pierce and her brain, by distancing herself. Surely, there's nothing good that Santana could bring to Brittany's life. Of course, Mrs. Pierce is not privy to the extent of the _friendship_ she and Brittany had been carrying out for a few weeks, but those are just details. Case and point is Santana is still Santana, the girl who got shipped off to live with her aunt in Texas because she's had one too many run ins with the law.

But, for all the reasons her brain gives her as to why this distance is a good thing, her heart tells her something entirely different. The tug in her gut tells her that this is stupid and that she is being stupid. The tightness in her chest makes her wish she'd never even been sent here, because then she wouldn't be feeling all of these feelings. Yet, here she is, in Knox City feeling frustrated, confused and mad.

She's mad at herself mostly. Definitely mad at Mrs. Pierce. But, really at herself. Quinn is right. Santana's never been one to listen to authority or anyone for that matter. So why should this be any different? She thinks back to the confrontation between Aunt Linda and the mayor and how her aunt had said that a girl like Brittany is good for a girl like Santana. Still, it doesn't mean the same the other way around.

Sitting up in bed, she leans on her hands and looks out her window giving her a perfect view of the one just beyond the chain link fence. There's a flickering of light, so she can only assume Brittany is watching television. Her heart aches or is beating extra fast and she isn't aware she's moved from her bed until she notices she's opening her bedroom window and climbing out of it.

It's not a long walk from her window to the chain link fence that separates Aunt Linda's yard from the Pierce's. It only hurts a little bit, climbing over the fence bare foot, but the night time dew on the grass soothes it quickly.

She doesn't consider that the window may be locked, why should it be? It should be unlocked for spontaneous moments such as this. Brittany's head slowly turns to her as she hoists herself into the bedroom, not alarmed as though half expecting this very thing to happen. She doesn't move from her spot on her bed with her back against the head board and legs stretched out in front of her.

Santana stands there for a moment, not completely still, but almost. She stares at Brittany, taking her in, letting herself take it _all _in. Then, with a deep breath and a nod of encouragement, she moves from the window and carefully takes a spot on the bed beside the Brittany.

She looks straight ahead at the television, then after a beat, moves her hand to rest on the top of Brittany's. She doesn't flinch from the touch and they sit there in silence for a few more minutes, until Santana speaks.

"I'm sorry." Santana tells her. Brittany doesn't move or say anything. "I know you're confused. I am too." She admits quietly and looks down at her hand on Brittany's. "For a long time, people have sorta tossed me aside. Not givin' me much of an afterthought 'cause I'm such a screw up." She shrugs as she tries to dig deep into why she's done some of the things she has done, especially the ones that she has done to the girl sitting next to her. "When I'm with you, I don't feel like such a shitty person. I don't know if it's who I am, the me around you, or if it's who I want to be for you." She sucks in her lips and looks to the window. "And then your mom, she uh, she sort of told me to get lost 'cause you'd be better off without me in your life." Santana explains slowly and delicately as possible. "Sometimes it's hard to think you're a good person, or at least turnin' into a better version of yourself when the rest of the world keeps tellin' your crap and unworthy of the nice things." She half smiles to herself and turns back so she is staring ahead of them at the flickering television. "I'm not the type of person people like _you_ go for." She whispers. "_Or_ end up with." She adds and her voice soft and sad. Brittany's eyes land on their hands and she nods, but only slightly, to show she hears her.

These words linger around the room for a while, before they fade away into silence. Then, ever so carefully, Brittany turns her hand around, laces her fingers through Santana's, watching how they go together seemingly perfect.

"_Maybe_ that's because people like me aren't ever lucky enough to find a person like you," Brittany finally speaks up and she looks up at Santana who stares back. "And actually _do_ somethin' about it." Santana's eyebrows knit together and her eyes search Brittany's in an almost disbelief.

"But, it's true, I'm no good for you, Brittany." Santana tells her and her voice sounds so tired.

"_Why not_?" Brittany challenges.

"_Because_," She huffs, lifting her eyes up to meet Brittany's. "You have a life here, one that was here before me and people _know you_, the way you've been and, this, this is going to make people talk and say things." Santana tries to firmly explain but the exasperation in her voice is ever present. "They're gonna say _mean_ things, maybe things that aren't true but most of them are gonna be. And your mom..." She shakes her head and closes her eyes as she can only imagine the wrath of Mama Pierce. "It sucks and it hurts and it's gonna be too hard to…"

"_You think that's the hard part_?" Brittany yells out in a half contained whisper, throwing her hands in the air in frustration. "You think _that's_ what scares me? Really, because I _don't_ care about _that_." She says as she tries to calm herself down. "Do you wanna know what I'm afraid of?" She asks barely above a whisper and her eyes glance down briefly before slowly lifting them back up to meet Santana's. "_You_." Santana is taken aback and her eyebrows knit together.

"Wha…?"

"You've made me… It's just," She shrugs as she stammers. "I _don't care_ that you're a _girl_ or have a record or that… you're Hispanic." Santana breathes out a chuckle. "You're beautiful. You're like, the rain; refreshing, fun and more than I ever expected." She shifts closer. "You're a good person, you're too proud _and_ vulnerable, especially when you're with me. You're kind."

"I'm _none_ of those things." Santana breaks eye contact and shakes her head.

"Except that you are." Brittany says softly, taking another step closer. "And for some reason, you let me see them in you." Santana slowly lifts her head, finding herself falling deep into those ocean blue eyes.

Without saying anything, Brittany pushes herself up from the bed and tugs Santana along with her. She reaches over and presses a button on the remote to shut off the television, leaving them in the dark except for the moonlight shining in through the window. In an understanding request for a dance, she pulls Santana's hand up to her shoulder and sets her own on Santana's hip. They sway side to side in silence and Santana snuggly sets her chin to rest on Brittany's shoulder and Brittany leans her head against Santana's.

"Ya know, dancin' used to mean somethin'." Brittany tells her, her lips brush against Santana's ear. "It used to be an expression of commitment. You didn't dance with_ just_ anyone and everyone. If you danced with someone, like _really_ danced with them, it meant that you were theirs and they were yours." Her hand moves from Santana's hip to the small of her back and she pulls her tightly against her. "The soft and slow sort of dancin'. The kind of dancin' where you don't know where you end and they begin." Brittany holds out their hands that are clasped and she gently untangles their fingers, running the tips of her own across the palm of Santana's hand. "The type of dancin' that you don't have to think about. That's what it used to mean." Santana gulps at the gentle way Brittany runs her fingertips on her, ghosting over her skin.

"Do you think it can still mean that?" Santana asks in a small voice and she shivers when she feels Brittany turn to her and set her lips to her ear again.

"I hope so." She whispers. "Because…" They are startled by the sound of a knock at Brittany's bedroom door and a familiar voice.

"Brittany?" Mr. Pierce calls from the other side of the door. "Are you awake? I thought I heard something?" He knocks again gently. Brittany turns back to Santana who is still in her arms.

"Probably wouldn't be ideal for me to be caught in your room." Santana points out as she lets her hands fall from Brittany's body.

"Probably not." Brittany reluctantly agrees, also letting her grip on Santana slacken until she is no longer in her grasp.

"Well," Santana makes her way to the window and gets herself ready hop out. "Sweet dreams blondie." She grins and she's gone after Brittany gives her a little wave.

* * *

><p>Santana is sitting on the porch with her head in her hands wondering where today is going to take her. Aunt Linda apparently has some plans with a man friend or something equally disturbing, so she is going to be out on a 'day trip' as she referred to it. She had left about an hour ago leaving her niece alone for the first time since she's gotten to Knox City. At first she was a little hesitant, but Santana assured her she is not going to burn down the house or have an all day rager, especially not with Mrs. Pierce constantly 'passing by' the house whenever she has a free moment from her mayoral obligation.<p>

The woman is actually starting to irritate her. If it wasn't for her daughter, Santana would have no qualms about speaking her mind to the lady. Obviously with these thoughts floating through her head another thought sweeps through her mind, one that she has been thinking about ever since it happened.

The day Brittany first kissed her.

Like, leaned in, pressed her lips to Santana's lips kind of kissed her. Her soft, _very_ soft lips at that. Not only did she kiss her, but she told her she was going to do it too.

That one kiss has spiraled into a slew of kisses and now everything is sort of out of whack. And even though she kind of likes it, it's all kind of annoying really. Santana was supposed to come here and 'rehabilitate' herself, but now things are starting to get in her way and they are all in the form of the bubbly girl from up the road. Then there's Quinn who's making her stare at all this stuff dead on. It's like staring into the sun, but she can't not look.

She shakes her head, hoping the motion will rid her mind of the thoughts clouded with sunny smiles and blue eyes. Realizing it's clearly a lost cause, she takes a deep breath and pushes herself up from the porch and makes her way back inside. Slowly, she scrolls through her three person phonebook and presses send when she lands on a specific name. Regardless of where her mind leads her or not, the fact is, there is nothing she can do about it.

"Hey." She smiles into her greeting when she hears the voice on the other end pick up. "I was wonderin' if you… wanted to do somethin'." For some reason or another she's nervous that she is sounding desperate. But she calms down when the girl from up the road is elated to hang out and wants to take her somewhere.

A few minutes later, Brittany is pulling into the Lopez driveway finding Santana on the porch steps waiting for her like she said she would. Santana quickly hops into the truck and tells Brittany to take her away somewhere, the blonde giggles and tells her to strap in and get ready. Santana notices the road they are taking, it's by the lake that they had went to for that party and she figures that Brittany is bringing her to her 'special' spot again.

"Ready?" Brittany asks after she kills the engine.

"Yeah, let's do this." Santana grins and they both jump out of the truck and Brittany leads the way through the trees to her secret hiding spot that has its own little lake. "Thank you for letting me hang out in your special place." She inwardly groans realizing how unintentionally dirty she sounded just now.

"Of course." Brittany smiles.

It's hot for early February in Texas, but they are obviously well prepared for such a day. They quickly make their way into the water, splashing around, giggling and basically just gossiping about school and the kids in their grade. After a deep conversation about the plus side to living in Capeside in Dawson's Creek, Brittany comments on how her dad used to have to explain to her that the settings in television shows were mostly fictitious places. Santana smirks, remembering her dreams of moving to the Creek, thinking it was just an hour or so away from her home back in Boston.

"Isn't it funny how when we're kids we ask our parents about everything?" Santana muses as she watches her fingers dance along the surface of the water. "I mean, when I was, like, seven, I was sure that my parents knew absolutely everything about anything." She chuckles at herself and the beliefs of her younger self. "I once asked my father if he had a pet dinosaur when he was a kid." Brittany laughs into the water creating a few bubbles and ripples to float by Santana. "What?" She asks with amusement. "When you're young you think anyone older than you is ancient." This only makes Brittany laugh more.

"When I was younger, sometimes now, I wondered a lot about love." Brittany admits as she spins around in the water. Santana averts her eyes, keeping Brittany's twirling body in her peripheral vision. "Like, how come we can't see it?" Brittany continues, unaware of her friend's awkwardness. "I asked my dad that a few times. He said you can see it, you just have to look carefully. That seemed really difficult, because isn't love just a feeling? How do you see a feeling? I feel the wind, but I can't see that either. I just didn't understand where all this love that everyone has for all these different things went. With the wind, it comes and goes, but isn't love a forever kind of thing? Isn't it something that's always around?" She turns around towards Santana who is staring down at the water that moves to and from Brittany's body. Concerned that she is distracting Santana with her water aerobics, Brittany stops. "I mean, there are a bunch of different emotions." She continues, in the hopes that her stillness will get Santana's attention. "But, you're not always sad because eventually you cry all of that out. You're not always mad either, because you'd get too tired to mad all the time. I guess you can be happy all the time, but that means you don't get sad or mad or anything and that doesn't make much sense because then you'd just sort of be a happy robot." Brittany smiles when she finally gets a reaction out of Santana.

It's a bit quiet between them for a few moments, Brittany letting the small giggle from Santana linger in the air just a bit longer before she continues.

"So, anyway, I just kept wonderin' where does it all go?" Brittany continues and steps towards Santana. "Ya know, love. When you feel so much of it that it almost feels like _too_ much and you feel as though you may explode or implode or completely disintegrate from it. When you can feel it in your fingers, toes, chest and taste it in your mouth. Where does it go?" Her voice falls into a softer tone as her feet move across the mushy lake bottom, bringing her closer to Santana who listens on intently and quietly. "Then _you_ happened," Brittany tells her in just above a whisper. "And the answer seemed fairly obvious, so, instead of thinking about it any further I kissed you and just hoped that you could feel it. That you could feel what I was feeling. Taste it on your tongue and make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. I kissed you and you let me, and then finally, you kissed me back."

"Brittany." Santana breathes out, willing her focus away from the girl standing just a few feet in front of her.

"I've never wanted to kiss anyone like that before. Until… well," She smiles as she shakes her head and shrugs a shoulder. "I'd never kissed anyone like that before either. And… I don't wanna kiss anyone else like that." Brittany admits finally getting Santana to look back at her in slight confusion and slight intrigue. Santana doesn't say anything back to her after a couple of long seconds so Brittany half smiles and looks down at the water where her hand skimming the surface. "You know what else I wonder?" Santana swallows hard, unsure if she wants to know. Brittany's half smile turns into a grin as she pulls her arm back and swings it forward, sending a wave of water in Santana's direction prompting a loud shriek from the shorter girl. "If I'm still faster than you." She yells out as she takes off running through the lake and towards the small shoreline.

"You are seriously going to get it." Santana warns but is thrown off when she wipes her eyes and spots Brittany close to the shore. "Yeah," She shouts as she swings her arms under the water to move herself fast through it. "You better run."

It starts to rain, completely out of nowhere, even with the sun still out and the girls give each other a look of bewilderment and giggle at the predictability of the unpredictable weather as of late. Santana gives up on trying to dry herself off, seeing as her towel is just as wet by now as the rest of her and tosses it to the side taking a seat by it. Brittany laughs at her friend's antics and throws her towel beside Santana's and plops next to her, their shoulders brush against each other in the process

Brittany lifts her hands up, palms facing the sky and she turns her face up as well letting the rain kiss her eyelids, opening her mouth and tasting it on her tongue. Santana watches on as she is simply enjoying herself in the randomness that rain provides and she smiles at the sight. Brittany is a beautiful girl, there's no way around that, it's a fact but, in this moment Santana can't help but notice just how beautiful she is. Even with her hair drenched and sticking to her neck and cheeks, even with grass clinging to her calves and a little bit of dirt by her ankle, Brittany is the most amazing thing Santana has ever laid eyes on.

Loud laughter erupts from the blonde and she turns her head towards Santana, catching the other girl staring at her. Brittany closes her mouth, swallowing the little bit of rain that she has collected and brings her hands to rest on her knees. Santana's eyes can't help it, they have a mind of their own and they rake down the length of Brittany's body before finally coming back up to meet those blue eyes and Santana sports a soft, tentative smile.

"What?" Brittany breathes out, her cheeks turn a light shade of pink, suddenly feeling self conscious in front of the other girl. Santana smirks, shakes her head in disbelief and chuckles a little to herself.

"Nothing." She says, her head finally stops shaking and she maintains eye contact with Brittany. "It's just…" She looks over the features of her friend's face briefly and she can feel it, right in her gut, exactly what she is looking for, she can feel what she finally sees. "I see it." Santana chooses to say and Brittany tilts her head in confusion, her lips tug up at the corners in a smile of hesitation.

"What do you see?" Brittany whispers, swallowing hard at the small lump that has formed deep in her throat and she can feel it slowly but surely sinking down into her stomach. Santana straightens out one of her legs, the one closest to Brittany and rests her arm on the other knee that is still bent turning her body slightly in friend's direction.

"What you were talkin' about." Santana explains vaguely and Brittany's eyes search hers for more. "The beauty you were tellin' me about, that time in the field by your dad's barn." Her voice grows softer, gentler and her eyes flicker down to Brittany's lips. "I think I see it now." Brittany straightens her head, watches the way Santana licks her lips and unconsciously she does the same.

Out of the corner of her eye Brittany sees Santana's arm, the one resting on her knee, fidget like she is going to move it. When she does, it's slow and careful and it doesn't stop moving until her fingers are touching Brittany's cheek. Brittany gasps, it's low and barely audible but they can both hear it, even over the pounding of the rain. Her eyes go over Brittany's face, looking at her cheeks, forehead and her hair and watches her fingers brush some of that hair away from her eyes until letting her hand rest fully on the girl's cheek.

"Why…?" Santana's words fall short as she stares at Brittany. It's quiet between them for a few seconds.

"Sometimes there's a reason for everything. Other times there's no reason at all. People think too much. They over analyze everything and need to know all sorts of details." Brittany explains in a gentle voice. "I don't get that. Where's the surprise? What's with the spoilers?" She shrugs her shoulders and smiles. "I try not to think too much. If that makes people think I'm dumb, whatever. I don't care." She half smiles at Santana. "I just want that moment."

"What moment's that?" Santana asks quietly while she leans in ever so slightly. Brittany shakes her head, nods and licks her lips, also leaning in slowly.

"The moment that takes my breath away." Brittany tells her, her own voice cracking at the end, but it's full of certainty and hope.

Their lips are inches, if that, apart and their breath mixes in the stale, rainy air. Their eyes flicker from eyes to lips and Brittany's hand comes up and her fingers wrap around Santana's wrist, not too tight but just right.

"I _want_ to kiss you." Santana whispers onto Brittany's slightly parted lips that close and swallow quickly and then she licks them realizing they are dry. Santana tilts her head, carefully thinking out her plan and not thinking all at the same time and a small sound escapes the back of the blonde's throat as she waits anxiously. "Do… do you want me to kiss you?" It's more than a question, well, the question is more than what is spoken. This kiss wouldn't be just any kind of kiss, it would be a _real_ kiss and very different from the small peck that Brittany had placed on her lips not too long ago.

Santana pulls back, just a little, but enough to look into Brittany's eyes. Those blues are staring back at her, they are glazed over with something Santana has never seen in them before and glassy which is probably due to the answer she has yet to give. They weren't just going to kiss, if they did anyway, and they both knew this. Brittany breaks eye contact to look down at the ground, her fingers still wrapped around Santana's wrist and she nods. Santana's hand slides down Brittany's cheek, her fingers tracing the contours of her jaw line until coming down to her chin and she slowly lifts the blonde's face back up to meet hers.

"Don't worry." Santana assures her offering a small smile, leaning forward to rest her forehead to the other girl's. "I've got you." She whispers and then tilts her head to the side and presses her lips to Brittany's softly.

For a few seconds Brittany lets herself be kissed by Santana, small pecks being placed onto her lips by the shorter girl. When Brittany starts to respond she moves her other hand from her knee and leans it on the ground turning her body more towards Santana's. Santana brings her hand back up to cup Brittany's cheek, her thumb caresses the skin there wiping away the little rain drops falling on them from the tree they are under.

A small moan creeps from Santana when she feels Brittany's tongue slide across her bottom lip, clearly asking for access. At first it's them exploring, learning each other's lips and tongue and how they move, but it doesn't take long for them to get a rhythm going. Santana can't help but think how perfectly their mouths mold together and she can only imagine how incredible their bodies would fit.

Brittany's hand moves from Santana's wrist to her neck, grips it around the back and pulls Santana closer into a harder kiss. And they sit there kissing each other with a passion neither one of them knew that they had in them, especially for one another. After a few minutes of nonstop kissing they pull apart for the need of oxygen. Brittany's fingers play with the wet hair sticking to Santana's neck, while Santana tucks some blonde hair behind Brittany's ear. They breathe heavily, staring at each other and smiling out little laughs of how amazing this feels.

With her eyes locked into browns, Brittany takes Santana's hand on her cheek with both of hers, holding it as though it were fragile and leans into it, her eyes flutter closed at the feeling. She turns her lips into the palm of Santana's hand and places small kisses into it, opening her eyes once again to watch Santana as she does so. When she's done paying more than enough attention to that particular body part, she swallows hard and brings Santana's hand into her lap and nods. Santana gulps, unsure if she understands this subtle look and motion of Brittany's head.

"Nobody ever comes here." Brittany shares as she gives their surroundings a quick once over.

Santana's natural nervous instinct is to spit out an instant and crude reply of 'not yet anyway' to Brittany's comment. But, she is quick to swallow that quip before it comes tumbling out and ruins whatever type of moment this is. She reaches behind her and grabs the towels they had discarded and even though they are wet, neither girl really cares.

Santana kisses the back of Brittany's hand before moving away, standing up and laying out the towel for them. It's not really that big but that's not really important, the other one she folds up a few times as a makeshift pillow and places it down at the top of the towel. When she's done setting up she kneels on the side of it and offers her hand to the blonde who gladly accepts it taking the same position as Santana on the opposite side of the towel.

They sit on the heels of their feet, holding hands and staring at each other, small bashful smiles dancing on their lips. It's Santana who moves first, shuffling to the center of the towel on her knees and tugs on Brittany's hands for her to do the same. She does and they meet in the middle, kneeling up on their knees and their hands fall from the others and onto parts of bare skin. Brittany's hands moves onto the front of Santana's shoulders while Santana's find the blonde's hips, her thumbs rubbing the skin just above her bathing suit bottoms.

It's Brittany who leans in first this time crashing their lips together, not even bothering for sweet little pecks and immediately opens her mouth to take in Santana's bottom lip, sucking on it before moving in again to take the shorter girl's tongue in her mouth. Her hands slide from Santana's shoulders to meet around her neck pulling her further in to her, wanting to taste more of her. Heaving for air, Santana pulls away and moves her lips down the blonde's cheek to her jaw then to her neck where she places small, open mouthed kisses leaving trails on her skin where the rain meets to mixes with her lips.

Brittany's head flies back and tilts to the side giving Santana better access to the skin she is ravishing. The kisses grow softer and less frantic and she feels Santana's hands splay across her back, running them up and down the expanse of her skin every now and again fumbling over the knot of her bathing suit top. Her lips move to the small part of skin just below her ear and Brittany lets out a tiny moan that is nearly drowned out by the rain. With one hand flat across the small of Brittany's back and her lips pressing sweet kisses across her neck and shoulders, Santana's other hand comes up, her fingers finding the string to blonde's top and gently tugs on it.

It loosens quickly after two or three tugs and as she pulls on it more, slowly undoing the knot, Santana pulls her lips away from the soft skin and looks to Brittany to make sure the pace of everything is good. Brittany's eyes are still closed as she begins to move her head back down, her lower lip tucked under her teeth making Santana's breath get caught in her throat. With the string undone she brings her lips back to Brittany's and she runs her hands up and down her bare back while the strings dangle down at her sides carelessly untied. She can't tell if she loves the feeling of Santana's hands on her naked back or if the feeling in her stomach is the anxiety for when those hands slip to the front of her body but she quickly decides that it's both when she feels Santana's fingers lightly tickle up and down her sides.

"_Yes_." Brittany mumbles between kisses, nodding her head gently as to not dislodge their lips. She smiles when she feels Santana do so into their kiss and when she feels those fingers grazing across the front of her body.

She's hesitant not only because she's nervous but she wants this burned into her memory. Santana's never done something like this before, she's never taken her time, and she's never wanted to before. But with Brittany, she can't help but take everything in at a glacial pace, she wants every second to be etched into her mind.

So ever so slowly, she trails the back of her fingers up from Brittany's toned stomach to the bottom of her bathing suit top that is still tied at her neck. Her fingers stop there, briefly, so she can press the palm of her hand to the skin below it and carefully slips them under the loose garment. When her fingertips reach the curve of Brittany's breast the blonde squeaks and gasps and grips Santana's neck tighter.

Not trying to draw out the torturous motion any longer, Santana moves her hand fully under the top and cups Brittany's breast squeezing it automatically and rubs her thumb across her hardened nipple. Brittany's body arches forward towards Santana, moving her body into her touch. Santana grins to herself when the blonde pulls their lips apart and moves her head to the side of Santana's pressing her lips to her neck and breathing heavy. Santana shuffles on her knees, bringing their bodies flush against each other both of them groaning at the feeling of their skin touching.

With her other hand, formerly at the small of Brittany's back, Santana reaches up behind the blonde's neck and unties the rest of the bathing suit top pulling her head back to watch it fall from her body. She gulps when she finally sees the girl in front of her topless and her own hand still firmly attached to one of her breasts.

"_Wow_." Santana breathes out, her eyes widening at the sight and her jaw slightly dropping. Brittany blushes and nervously starts to play with Santana's hair, her eyes fixed on Santana who is not embarrassed about staring. Her eyes travel up from the girl's legs until finally settling on those blues and she smiles. "You're sex… Brittany, you're very pretty." She whispers, suddenly conscious of the fact that she had been staring like a dog at a bone. Brittany bites her lip, trying to contain her grin and she nods.

"Thanks." She says quietly and she eventually looks up when her fingers stop fiddling with dark locks and come to find a string twirled around them.

She grips it between her thumb and index finger and pulls it forward, a bright red string coming between them as Brittany unties Santana's top. Santana reaches behind her and helps the blonde out and unties the string around her middle and she watches Brittany's eyes follow the falling garment. Brittany smiles at how open Santana is with her nudity, letting her hands fall back to the blonde's waist and she allows those blue eyes to get a good look. With a little bit of confidence, Brittany reaches out to touch Santana's bare chest, her fingers rounding the curve at the side until finally grasping her whole hand over it. Santana's eyes shut and her head leans back slightly, a small moan escaping her lips.

Brittany watches her hand fondle Santana's breast, testing it out, running her fingers over the erect nipple before moving to the next one with her other hand.

"_Fuck_." Santana mutters, her eyes opening and bringing her hand up to cup Brittany's cheek again pulling her into a kiss. They both wince at the feeling of their breasts pressed up against each other, Brittany's hands come to Santana's back pulling her closer.

Brittany grunts when she feels Santana's fingers gently running up and down the inside of her thigh, every now and again hitting that spot between her legs. She squeezes the blonde's hip before letting her fingers travel down to her thighs again, teasing her with slight brushes of her fingers over her sensitive area.

Brittany pulls from the kiss and pushes her forehead to Santana's when she feels a hand finally cups her core. She rubs her through the fabric of her bathing suit bottoms, up and down and then in small circles around the area she estimates is where Brittany's most sensitive spot is. She seems to be right in her guess considering the reactions she is getting.

"_Oh my God_." Brittany moans out in a whisper into Santana's mouth, their lips brush against each other as Santana moves her fingers over the fabric. She smiles at Brittany's enthusiasm, pressing her fingers harder to where she knows it feels good and the blonde digs her nails into Santana's back in response, her hips jerking forward for more contact.

"Does this feel good?" It's a stupid question, obviously it feels good she's not an idiot but she wants to make sure that Brittany is still comfortable with everything is going on. Brittany's eyes pop open, lock into Santana's and she nods, panting and licking her lips.

"Y-_yes_." She replies with a small smile and sighs out from all of the amazing feelings going on through her body. Santana grins in return and nods, leaning in quick to peck Brittany on the lips before moving her mouth down to her shoulder and kissing the front of her chest bringing her lips around her nipple and sucking lightly. "_Oh_!" Her hand flies to the back of Santana's head pushing her into her chest more.

"Lie down." Santana tells her gently when she pulls away from her breast, getting a small whine from the blonde but her fingers are still moving against her core.

Her eyes flicker to the top of the towel for Brittany to do as she says and after a few seconds of a questioning stare, Brittany does as requested not happy about the feeling of Santana's hand moving away from between her legs. She watches as the blonde slowly shifts in her spot and lowers her head down onto the towel that Santana had created into a pillow for the time being. Santana moves to face her, still on her knees and with shaky hands she reaches for the top of the bathing suit bottoms Brittany is still currently wearing.

She hooks her fingers into the fabric but looks to Brittany before doing anything, waiting for some sort of answer to an unasked question. But the blonde doesn't verbally respond and she doesn't even nod her head. Instead, she lifts her hips up a little giving Santana the signal to continue. She slides the bottoms over the blonde's hips, past her thighs, over her knees until finally slipping them past her feet and tosses them to the side where their tops are strewn around the ground.

After watching it land she brings her focus back to Brittany who is staring back up at her intently. Santana licks her lips, leaning forward and placing her hands down onto the towel by the sides of Brittany's hips. Her eyes move from blue eyes, down to her bare chest making sure to give each breast her undivided attention, then down her toned stomach until finally resting on that place she had been dreaming of for probably a lot longer than she has realized. Looking back up to meet Brittany's stare she crawls up a little on her knees.

"I wanna…" She chokes out suddenly forgetting how to speak. "I'm…" Santana knows what she is trying to say, she's said it before when she's hooked up with people, girls, but this… this is different and she can feel it everywhere. And in this moment, instead of saying '_I'm gonna fuck you till you can't walk'_ she w_ants _to say something else. She gulps, finding it hard to speak under Brittany's gaze. "I mean, I wanna…" Brittany nods, seeming to understand everything that Santana can't quite say and then she leans up on her elbow and reaches her hand out to grip Santana's neck pulling her down on top of her carefully.

"Me too." She whispers onto Santana's lips before kissing her sweetly, receiving a whimper in her mouth as a response.

Their hands search each other's bodies, gripping at new skin and Brittany's thumbs hook into the bottoms of Santana's bathing suit. Getting the hint, Santana sits up and unties the sides of the bottoms and taking them off without even having to stand up.

"Impressive." Brittany pants out and quickly reaches out for Santana to return to lying on top of her which she does with a little giggle.

"I try." She smirks smugly bringing her lips to meet Brittany's.

They continue to kiss, heatedly and run their hands and fingers across new skin, arching their bodies further into each other for more. Santana slips a leg between Brittany's, leaning over her on her forearms pulling back to gauge the blonde's reaction when she pushes her thigh down into her center. They both moan and gasp at the feeling of Brittany's wetness slipping against Santana's skin. They smile at one another, Brittany giggles as she reaches up to move Santana's hair from her face.

"I've never done this before." The blonde admits, tearing her eyes from Santana's for a moment biting her lip nervously. "So I don't really know… what to like, to do… to you." She clarifies, glancing back up at the girl hovering over her. Santana nods, bringing her hand up to move some stray hairs from Brittany's forehead.

"It doesn't matter Britt, it's okay." Santana tells her, shrugging her shoulders. "Don't worry about it." She goes to lean down and capture the blonde's lips but Brittany dodges her kiss.

"_I_ care." Brittany exclaims her hand pressing against Santana's chest to push her back so she will look at her. "I want…" She rolls her eyes at herself and how she can be so comfortable usually and now being so blunt is so embarrassing. "I want to touch you. I want to make you feel good." She admits in a hushed tone and Santana smiles down at her.

"You… you always make me feel good." Santana admits honestly. Her eyes focus deeply into Brittany's and her brow furrows, as though it's just hitting her. "When you look at me… I…" She looks down at Brittany chest and slowly brings her hand up and places her palm over her heart. Brittany's eyes furrow slightly, her lips part and her eyes water slightly as she studies the girl above her.

"You shouldn't say things like that to me." Brittany finally speaks up and Santana's head snaps up her eyes finding those blues staring right into her. She can't help but smirk at Brittany saying her words back to her. "Because then you say things and then I do things… and… and I can't take those things back." She shakes her head, her hand moving down to grip the one that belongs to Santana's on her chest lacing their fingers together when she finds it. "And I don't want to either." She lets out leaning up and finally bringing their lips together again. "Show me." She whispers between kisses while leading their intertwined hands lower and lower.

Santana nods, taking the cue from the blonde who is leading them to where they both want to be. She unlocks her fingers from Brittany's placing her hand over the back of the other girls and guiding her towards her own center. She can feel Brittany's hand shaking in her own but the blonde doesn't hesitate or even make a motion to stop. Santana's fingers gently press against Brittany's knuckles to push her fingers forward, towards her entrance.

Santana groans at the feeling of Brittany's fingers slipping through her folds with her assistance. Her forehead rests against the blonde's shoulder and she turns to face her cheek her breath hitting the skin there.

"Is this…?" Brittany quietly asks as her fingers explore the most intimate spot on her best friend.

"Mhmm." Santana forces out, her head nodding furiously against the blonde's body. She sucks in air when she feels Brittany's finger slip inside of her experimentally, her own hips bucking down into the other girl's hand. "_Shit_." Her hand releases the blonde's confident she is understanding the mechanics of it all and with as much strength as she's got, what with Brittany touching her like this, she brings her fingers to dance up the blonde's thigh.

Santana pecks Brittany's cheek when she feels the heat from the blonde hitting her hand and Brittany's legs spread expectantly. Her fingers stretch out to graze the soaked skin that has nothing to do with the rain and Brittany moans out canting her hips up into Santana's touch.

"_Please_." Brittany begs, turning her head towards Santana's that is very much still pressed against her cheek. Santana nods and pushes herself back up onto her arm and looks into Brittany's eyes, trying to keep herself steady as the blonde's fingers still continue to touch her teasingly.

With their faces inches away Santana watches Brittany's jaw drop as she slips a finger inside of her. She lets out a breath that seems to get caught in her throat as Santana starts to move in and out of her. Taking notes, Brittany follows suit and dips a finger into Santana's soaking wet entrance getting the same reaction.

"_Jesus, _Brittany." Santana hisses, clenching her eyes shut briefly trying to control her hips from moving frantically on the other girl's hand.

They slowly thrust in and out of each other, creating a little rhythm that they lose and regain a few times. After a while Santana adds a second finger in Brittany and brushes her thumb across the sensitive bundle of nerves just above as she pushes in. Brittany's hips grind up into her hand, needing more and more friction. Brittany lifts her head up for a kiss and with her free hand cups Santana's breast, squeezing it and twisting her nipple between her fingers.

Santana breaks from the kiss to bring her mouth to Brittany's chest, kissing between them and taking turns licking and sucking each one equally. She begins thrusting harder, only a little bit, deeper and quicker all the while trying to rub tiny circles over Brittany's clit as she works. Santana can feel by the way the hips beneath her are moving and the way the muscles around her fingers are tightening that Brittany is close to going over the edge.

"Oh _my_…" Brittany yells out and if it weren't for the rain hitting the water behind them Santana is sure her voice would have echoed off of the trees and all the way back in to town. She grins at how vocal Brittany is and pumps even faster, pulling her fingers out and rubbing the wetness over her clit. "Uh, _Santana_." Brittany moans quietly, pulls Santana's face back up to her with her free hand and leans up for a kiss. It's a little misplaced and sloppy but neither girl cares.

"Rub… right…." Santana starts but then just moves to get a better angle when she realizes that she is nowhere near as close as Brittany. She doesn't want her to feel bad about not getting her off, but there is no way she is going to fake it. Although she is pretty certain that watching Brittany orgasm will instantaneously make her come.

"Sorry." Brittany breathes out as she moves her fingers from inside Santana to where she is being verbally directed.

"_Oh, uh_." Santana shakes her head, licks her lips and kisses Brittany's forehead. "No, it's… _oh_ it's _so good_." And Brittany smiles through her panting, letting her free hand come to the side of Santana's face keeping her there. Santana grins back turning her face slightly in Brittany's hand and kisses her palm quickly.

Santana's theory is right after all. Brittany's breathing and hips are erratic as she grows closer and closer to climaxing. The hand between Santana's legs fumbles and stills until eventually, Brittany's body isn't able to control itself and her fingers slide from inside of the girl above her. She moans out a stuttered apology as her hand, soaked in Santana's arousal, grabs at the back of Santana's neck. But, Santana doesn't mind, in fact, she's smiling. She watches the way Brittany's face contorts in pleasure as she touches her. Santana is enjoying the sight of driving Brittany completely wild with just a touch of her hand.

Adjusting her position, Santana manages to aid her thrusts by grinding her hip into the back of her hand and presses her centre against Brittany's thigh providing her own friction. After a few more jerks of her hips, Brittany's eyes nearly roll back and her head falls to the makeshift pillow arching up. Her mouth creates a perfect 'o' shape and sucks in a gasp of air, only managing to push out a squeak as she tumbles into her orgasm. Santana keeps her fingers deep inside of Brittany and continues to rub herself along the blonde's thigh, working double time for herself because the sight of Brittany coming makes Santana fall apart a few seconds after.

Their breathing is heavy, their chests rise up and down at intense speeds while their hearts beat rapidly. Small airy groans and moans slip from the back of their throat and into the misty air and they giggle out smiles as they finally come down from their highs. They move their hands from between each other's legs, slowly bringing them back to another part of the other's body. Brittany reaches her hands around Santana's neck, moving those dark locks to one side while Santana, whose given up on leaning on her forearms and is now fully lying on top of the blonde, tickles Brittany's sides with her fingers.

Still trying to catch her breath, Santana stares deeply into Brittany's eyes and smiles before leaning down to place a chaste kiss to her lips and then shuffles down a little to rest her head against the blonde's chest. Brittany grins at the feeling of Santana's breath hitting her moist skin and the feel of the other girl lying on top of her. She brings her arms around Santana, letting them rest on her back and squeezing her closer. She kisses the top of Santana's head and then turns her own to rest her cheek against dark locks.

As Santana lies there, with her cheek pressed to Brittany's chest not only does she try to even her breathing but she can't help but wonder what is happening to her. Everything with Brittany is different, even the most mundane things but most importantly moments like this are different. Before this moment she had come to terms with the fact that she finds comfort in the presence of the blonde and now she understands it's more than that. There's that comfort in the contact as well, she feels safe and needed and most of all wanted. But before she can even put more thought into this a beeping sound comes from behind her.

"Ugh, I think that's my phone." Brittany groans, reaching to her side carefully as to not shift Santana off of her. Santana looks up and gently rests her chin in her hand that's placed over Brittany's chest and watches her flip her phone open. "It's my mom." She rolls her eyes and tosses her phone back down.

"I guess we gotta go." Santana's voice is raspy and disappointed. Brittany tosses her phone to the grass and nods regretfully. It's at this point that the girl's remember that they are still very much naked and even though they had literally stared each other down practically drooling they are all too well aware of the exposed skin now. "Umm, here's… here's your top." Santana picks up the yellow bikini top and hangs it from her finger. "Let me, here… let me help you." She moves to kneel behind Brittany and ties the top tie for the blonde who holds her hair up so Santana doesn't get her hair stuck. After tying it she lets her fingers linger a little longer than necessary on the blonde's skin.

They continue to dress themselves in silence, bashfully sneaking peeks at one another every now and again until they are fully covered. Brittany gathers their damp towels and slips her flip flops on, turning her head to wait for Santana to finish getting her shoes on. When she does the blonde smiles at her and extends her hand for the other girl to take and when she does, she grins a little wider.

Once they get back to the truck Santana takes the wet towels from Brittany and tosses them in the back of the truck before quickly jogging to the driver's side door and opening it up for the blonde. Brittany looks at her curiously, a small smirk playing on her lips while Santana nervously shifts her feet under Brittany's stare. The blonde nods and slips into the truck's driver's side and watches Santana shut the door for her and make her way around the back to the passenger side.

The drive back home is pretty quiet. No radio, not much conversation the only noise that can be heard is the wind sweeping in from the open windows and their heartbeats in their ears. Every few seconds they look to one another with shy smiles, biting lips and pink tinted cheeks.

Brittany drives past her house and pulls into the Lopez driveway, driving all the way up to the back of Aunt Linda's truck. She puts the truck in park, looks at her hands as they slide down from the steering wheel and she glances over to Santana through her eyelashes. Santana's leaning her elbow on the window, her cheek in her palm and she stares openly at Brittany with a smirk on her face.

"_So_…" Brittany drawls out, rolling her eyes playfully as she breaks the silence. "I had a really good time." She stammers over her words as she shifts in her seat sliding a little closer towards her friend. Santana swallows hard and brings her hands to her lap fidgeting with her fingers.

"Me too." She replies, her voice scratchy and low. Her smirk fades and is replaced with a thoughtful smile and she turns her head in Brittany's direction. She opens her mouth to say something, but closes it, because she can't quite seem to figure out how to put the words. Brittany shakes her head softly at her and reaches to cover the back of her hand with her own.

"It's okay." Brittany tells her and rubs her thumb over the back of Santana's knuckles. Their intimate moment is once again interrupted by the sound of an annoying beep. Brittany looks down at her phone that's between her and Santana and she sighs when she sees it's her mother again.

"You should get goin'." Santana begrudgingly suggests. "Besides," She points to Aunt Linda's truck ahead of them. "Aunt Lee's getting' dinner started." She says with a sigh. "And she's been makin' me be her little helper in the kitchen these days." Brittany laughs, thankful for Santana for easing the air between them with humor even if it is truth.

From the bay window, Aunt Linda spots Brittany and Santana sitting in the powder blue pickup that's parked right behind her own truck. With dinner almost ready, she figures she'll go out and see if Brittany wants to join the Lopez women for some supper. She throws the dish rag from her hand to over her shoulder and heads to the front door, pulling it open. The hand that lifts to push the screen door open stills and her feet stutter to a stop against the wood floor of the open foyer in her house.

She takes a step back and pulls the main door slightly closed, giving her just enough space to see through. Out of the tiny crack of the opened from door, she spots her niece kissing the girl next door. Her hand comes up so that her fingers are just covering her mouth that is slightly agape while the hand on the door knob fights between closing it and keeping it open.

The kiss is over before it even starts, but Aunt Linda saw enough to know that it was more than just a stolen kiss. It wasn't even a stolen kiss. It was given, by both parties. She gently closes the door, not wanting Santana to have an idea that she may have seen what had happened. As she makes her way back into the kitchen her mind is a whirlwind. She shouldn't be surprised at this. In fact, it's something Linda thinks she should have seen coming. It's also something that she thinks has more to do with why Annie Pierce has such a problem with Santana. She had an inkling that it had to do with her niece's sexuality, but now, she realizes that it has more to do with Brittany's.

Her shoulders stiffen when she hears the front door open and close followed by the tell tale signs of Santana coming home, if she weren't already privy. She takes in a deep breath and lets it out slowly, preparing herself to come face to face with Santana. She hears the kicking of shoes hit the wall, a yawn and then the shuffling of bare feet walking across wood floor.

"Mmm." Santana hums as she enters the kitchen. "Smells good in here." She comments. "What's for dinner?" Aunt Linda tugs the dish towel from her shoulder, sets her hands on the counter and then spins to face her niece. When she does, she can't help but take instant notice to the small smile playing on Santana's lips.

Santana is smiling this angelic and innocent smile and there is this little gleam in her eye that makes Aunt Linda forget words for a moment. This girl before her resembles someone she once knew. Santana quirks an eyebrow at her silence and shifts under her stare.

"What?" Santana asks and looks down at herself self consciously. Aunt Linda shakes her head when she realizes that, not only has she been staring dumbly but, she hasn't said a word in a long while.

"Turkey bolognaise." Aunt Linda finally says and motions towards the stove where the food is finishing up. Santana side eyes her aunt as she steps further into the kitchen to inspect their dinner.

"Well, I'm excited." Santana beams and brushes by her aunt to head down the hall. "I'm ravenous." She calls out over her shoulder, leaving her aunt alone in the kitchen while she changes.

Aunt Linda wonders when this happened; she wonders where she's been this entire time. She's only ever seen Santana this happy was when she was a little girl playing out in her backyard and swinging on that darn tire swing across the way. She was sure when Santana was dropped off on her doorstep only a few months ago that the same brooding teenager was going to be picked up from her doorstep.

Then she realizes. Aunt Linda knows that look in Santana's eyes.

It's funny how the thought process runs its course and suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, the simplest answer turns out to be the most obvious of answers. Somehow, Aunt Linda thinks with a smile, Brittany has gotten Santana to take down her walls and open up. But more importantly, she's gotten her to fall in love. And Aunt Linda can't help but think how good that looks on Santana.

* * *

><p>For the past couple of nights, well every other night, Santana and Brittany have been sneaking into one another's bedrooms. They wait until it's late enough so that their families are fast asleep and slip into the other's bed where they spend the night whispering about anything and everything. This particular night, Santana is in Brittany's bed, trying to stifle her giggles as the girl beside her does her best impression of a British accent. When the laughter between them subsides, they take in the silence smoothly and comfortably, neither batting an eyelash when Brittany reaches over and laces her fingers through Santana's.<p>

"I thought about what you were sayin'." Brittany says. "About doin' what I love." She clarifies a bit and Santana turns her head on the pillow to face her. "There's this college in Illinois, they have this auto technician program. It's hands on experience." She explains in an airy voice and Santana can see a hint of a smile on her lips with the help of the moonlight trickling into the Brittany's bedroom. "I'd be able to do things I've never gotten to do at the shop." Santana can't help but smile in hearing how excited the possibility of this sounds to Brittany.

"Britt," She breathes out and squeezes Brittany's hand tighter. "That's awesome."

"Yeah." Brittany lets out and nods. "I just have to get my parents on board." She sighs.

"If your parents really want you to be happy, there's no way they couldn't be with you on this." Santana explains, somewhere wishing these words were somewhat true in her own relationship with her parents.

It's quiet again and Brittany can tell that Santana is using this silence for thinking. She wonders if Santana thinks about her parents considering how far they are from one another. Not just literally but emotionally as well and if she does, how often and what does she think about.

"What happened with your parents?" Brittany finally asks after some more thought. "I mean, I know they got divorced, but why?" She wonders aloud, hoping she has posed this question delicately enough for Santana to open up about it.

"Umm, well," Santana shifts in her spot, moving closer to Brittany and rests her head to her shoulder. "Ya know, when they first explained it to me and my brother they made it seem like they both fell out of love." She begins. "I still don't understand how that can happen. I mean, 'cause then that means you can fall out of love with anything, anyone." She pauses and adjusts her grip on Brittany's hand, pulling it closer to her own body. "But, as I got older, I came to realize that it was my father who 'fell out' of love with my mother. That it wasn't actually about _not_ loving her, but that he loved himself more. _Apparently_ he had been cheating on her for years, according to my brother anyway." She presses her lips gently to Brittany's bare arm and continues to speak with them brushing over her skin. "Sometimes I wonder if he does still love her though. Like, maybe he just got scared when he realized that he was living this _family_ life or whatever and he wasn't ready. I could understand that, I guess. Maybe he just got stuck between something good and a mistake." Santana shakes her head lightly, leaving her lips to Brittany's arm. "I guess I'll never really know."

"Did you ever ask him?" Brittany asks after a beat. She can feel Santana's lips purse on her skin as she contemplates.

"Once." Santana replies. "It was right after he moved out, I asked him why and if he was ever coming back. He'd just picked me up for his weekend with me. I remember watching him drive and how uninterested he was in havin' me around." She moves her head so her cheek rests on Brittany's arm instead of her lips. "He said 'why don't you ask your mother'." She says in a deep voice. "And that was when she became _my mother_ and not mommy."

"Did you ask her?" Brittany inquires, reaching her free hand across her body to lightly tickle up and down Santana's arm.

"I couldn't." Santana shakes her head against Brittany. "I didn't want to have her have to tell me. I don't know if it was 'cause I didn't want to upset her or 'cause_ I_ didn't want to hear it."

"Maybe it was both." Brittany suggests as she turns her head to press a kiss to the top of Santana's head.

"Hmm?" She hums out, closing her eyes a bit as sleep slowly falls over her.

"That maybe you didn't want to hear it because you didn't want to upset her." Brittany explains in a vague sort of way. "Like, maybe it's not one reason or another but all of them bunched together. Ya know?" She pulls her head back when she feels Santana shift beside her until she is looking at her. "What?" Brittany chuckles, wondering why she's being looked at like this.

"Things I _thought_ I knew, I…" Santana tries to explain, but has to pause to regain her control her thoughts and what she's going to mean with what she says. "You show me to look at them differently. And I kinda hate you for that." She says in an amused tone, though she tries to come off serious. "Only," She brings their clasped hands up so she can press her thumb into Brittany's chin affectionately. "I don't hate you, Brittany. Not even a little bit." She shakes her head and carefully moves to bring her lips up to meet Brittany's for a soft kiss. When their lips part Brittany covers her mouth as she yawns causing a yawn and a giggle from Santana. "Hmm, maybe we should sleep." She suggests as her yawn comes to a close.

They cuddle together with arms draped over stomachs with fingers brushing against skin while legs intertwine underneath covers. Eventually, they fall asleep with the cool breeze of the February, Texas air sweeping into the silent bedroom. When morning comes, they go through their usual routine which consists of little pecks on lips cheeks and chins until eventually one of them finds the strength to slip out of bed and head over to their own house.

Santana hesitantly slides her body from the bed and picks up her sweatshirt from the desk chair. As she slips it on, she looks up and catches Brittany watching her. She smiles as Santana readies herself to climb out the window, shoes in hand and one leg out already. Santana looks to the ground preparing herself to jump, but before she does turns back and grins at the blonde still sitting in bed.

"I have to tell you somethin'." Brittany says in a loud whisper before she can fully make an exit. Santana's smile falters for a moment, nervous because conversations that start out like this usually never end well. Brittany licks her lips as her smile grows gentle and she glances down to her lap while Santana steadies herself on the window sill.

"Britt," She says and gets Brittany to look up at her. "You can tell me anything." This makes Brittany smile and let out a long breath of relief and she nods to herself.

"You know what the best feelin' in the world is?" Brittany asks and Santana tilts her head to the side sending the blonde a curious stare. She goes to respond but Brittany is quick to cut her off. "And don't interrupt me with a silly or snappy comeback, like, Christmas mornin' or the way even the most dysfunctional of families somehow come together durin' a round of 'happy birthday' or even the way the stranger sittin' next to you could wind up bein' your best friend." Santana chuckles at the rant and Brittany rolls her eyes at herself for it before she takes a breath and continues. "I mean, those things are so totally awesome, but, it's so much more than that. You know… _that_ feelin'. The one that's deep down in your stomach." She explains, bringing her hands down one on her stomach and one over her chest. "You feel it flutter and you're not sure what's goin' on in there because you've heard people talk about butterflies and you're seriously startin' to question the possibility of pretty little creatures floatin' around inside of you. It's the same feelin' that makes your toes go numb and there's that tinglin' sensation runnin' through your whole body. Once you feel it you never forget it, that's for sure. But even that particular feelin' isn't the best part. Not even close."

Brittany shakes her head as she thinks about what it is that she is saying, not only to herself, but to Santana. She bites on her top lip, taking it with her bottom teeth and she drops her hands to her lap once again.

"The best part and the most incredible feelin' that has ever been felt in the entire world, universe even, is getting' it over and over again. It's tastin' somethin' sweet and smilin' 'cause the sweetness reminds you of a kiss." Brittany places her finger tips to her lips for emphasis as she feels the feeling she is describing. "It's feelin' somethin' warm and soft against you and feelin' the safest you've ever felt because before this warmth you've only ever dreamed of this, this certainty. It's breathin' the scent of the air right before it rains and bein' able to see that smile, even if only in your mind."

Brittany pushes herself up from the bed and slowly walks over to where Santana is, still perched on the window sill half in half out, and stops right in front of her. She moves from the balls of her feet to her heels, not quite sure where to put her hands so she plays with them in front of her stomach, and she looks to the floor before she can look to Santana to continue. When she lifts her gaze, Santana is staring right back at her with adoration and wonder.

"_You_ are my feelin'. _You_ are the butterfly in my stomach, flutterin' around. _You_ are my warmth. _Yours_ is the smile I see before the rain." Brittany sighs, not in frustration, but in exhaustion from all of these feelings. "I know that you don't believe in…" They both know what she cuts herself off from saying and Santana gulps at the pause. The word skipped; love. "But, I want to prove you wrong. You think I have no idea, that I have never seen what somethin' like this can wind up becomin' or what it can turn people into but, I do. I know that you say you're not, but you're afraid and…" Santana opens her mouth to speak, but Brittany's hand flies up to keep her from interrupting. "Stop, before you jump in to deny it just… just listen 'cause I'm not done. You think that I'm naïve or… I don't know, too innocent to know the consequences of all of this. Maybe I am, but, like… isn't that the point?"

She drops her hand to her side and shakes her head, looking around the room as if all the answers for this conversation and rhetorical questions are written on her walls. She laughs for a moment and Santana isn't sure if she should be concerned or continue to shut up and listen to the rest of what Brittany has to say to her.

"You're not supposed to over think this stuff." Brittany clarifies and Santana sits there, in the window sill. "You're _not_ supposed to analyze, sit down and write a pros and cons list of the possible outcomes. Because, you never really know how things are gonna end up. You've just got to kind of take a deep breath and a leap and hope that when you finally reach the ground you don't fall flat on your face. You hope that instead of windin' up with a bunch of bruises and a broken heart you're caught before it comes to that." Brittany steps that one step closer so that they are only a foot away from one another and she clasps her hands in front of her as she looks deeply into Santana's eyes. "You hope that _because_ of the butterflies and the sweetest tastin' kisses and the smiles before the rain that you're caught. That they are there to keep you safe, hold you close and tell you that everythin' you feel, well, that they feel it too." Her voice is soft and she smiles sweetly as she speaks. "That they can't imagine a sunrise or a sunset without seein' it through your eyes and that their days begin and end with your smile and the way you breathe so softly in your sleep. That they know how you breathe so gently, like a newborn baby, because they've taken the time to watch you as you're dreamin'. And that they'd never let you fall without bein' there to catch you because they need you to catch them too."

Brittany finally makes that last move and reaches a hand out to grab Santana, pulling her from the window sill until she is standing in front of her. Carefully, she slides her hand down her arm and grabs both of her hands with her own. Santana is only staring back at her, but she is at least listening to everything that she has to say to her.

"I _know_ that you're afraid, but I _will_ catch you. I _promise_ I will be there to catch you because I need you to be there to catch me. I am so scared, _so_ freakin' scared. I've never been here before, I've never felt this or anythin' like this but I know that I want it…" Brittany squeezes Santana's hands with her own and leans her forward so their heads are pressed together. "I want you." She whispers before pulling her head back. "I'm scared, but not because I think you'll turn around after I'm finished spillin' my guts to you. I know you are gonna do just that. But honestly, I don't think anything you do can make me stop lovin' you." Her eyes flicker between the two dark orbs searching her own. "What I _am_ afraid of is that you will _never_ understand just how _much_ I mean it when I say that I love you. Because, I do. It's as simple as that. Words are words and they can only be said so many times before they become old and over used. But I do, love you." She finally says the words, those words that people say when it's really all there's left to say because the feeling is almost too much. "And I want to tell you _all_ the time 'cause I think you're amazin'. 'Cause I think you are the most beautiful person that I have ever met in my entire life. Because, it's like, real life didn't exist until you came back into it." Santana's eyes flicker between those big blue eyes staring back at her, unable to breathe let alone speak. "'Cause I remember you then and know who you are now and it _does_ matter who you were in between, it's only more of why I love you."

Brittany rubs her thumbs over the back of Santana's hands, running them over her knuckles and squeezing her fingers gently with her own. She tilts her head to the side and takes a few breathes before continuing. Santana's lips move to speak, only, nothing seems to come out except a short spurt of air.

"I don't wanna play games because it's not every day that you find someone, the person who, just by looking into their eyes you can see exactly how they see you. I don't wanna hide it or keep it a secret because if you… I… you make me great. I wanna make promises so that I can show you that promises are not like rules, only made to be broken. I wanna show you that promises are made to be kept." Brittany lets go of one of Santana's hands and brings it up to cup her cheek making the other girls eyes flutter closed for a second. "So, yeah, that's it. That's my big speech. The one where I put myself out there, heart on the line and all. And I guess this is the part where I ask you to love me back." Santana closes her mouth and swallows hard. "To trust me even if everyone you've ever trusted before has only let you down. Trust me because _you know_, deep down, that I am so deeply in love with you and that you can't even imagine me lettin' you down or breakin' a promise I make to you." She releases Santana's other hand so that now, she is cupping her other cheek, holding her face in her hands. "Tell me you love me back, because, just 'cause you do and 'cause I'm your butterfly and 'cause I'm your smile before the rain."

When Brittany blinks away the blur of unshed tears, she finally sees Santana's glistening back at her. The girl before her looks surprised and unsteady but beautiful. Slowly, Santana's hands come up and grab at her wrists, letting her thumbs rub into her hands. Santana closes her eyes and a lone tear trickles down her cheek, trailing down to her lips until it finally descends down her quivering chin.

Then, with a whisper of a breath, Santana pulls those hands on cheeks away and steps back. She opens her eyes and watches Brittany's arms fall to her side at an almost slow motion pace while she reaches the window. They don't say anything, but both know that Santana is telling her with her eyes that she is sorry, not just for leaving in this moment, but for not being able to say anything. But with all the greatness in her, Brittany musters up a smile and nods. She mouths 'it's okay' because the words just won't come out and she looks on sadly as Santana climbs out of her bedroom window leaving her in silence and alone with her declaration of love.

Santana barely has time to process anything that has just happened because Aunt Linda comes knocking on her door asking her to run an errand in town for her. She is sort of grateful for the distraction because maybe it will take her mind off of the fact that she… Brittany said 'I love you' and she _just left_. She didn't say anything. Nothing.

But, she didn't know what to say. What's the proper response to a speech about why and how someone is in love with you? Is there one? Everything over the past few months has been heavy. Her heart is heavy her brain hurts and there never seems to be a right decision to make. Just a bunch of decisions and choices and consequences and as she drives into town down the South Service Road, she thinks about how Aunt Linda told her 'damn the consequences'.

She wonders how much of that is true. She wonders how many people have weighed the good verse the bad and said 'screw aftermath of it all'. After everything she's been through and done, it's sort of strange that she would be so worried about the sequence of events that might happen should she just go with the slow Texas flow that Brittany has been leading her into. And she knows it. It's been there all along just like Quinn said. Brittany has been holding her hand out to her and asking her to dance like nobody is watching, except she's been too afraid to deal with the destruction that might come their way after all the 'I love you's' are said and done.

She _is_ afraid.

As she heads down Charles Avenue she glances to her right and spots the Knox City Town Hall building and spots that fire engine red Mustang convertible parked perfectly in the mayor's spot. And she realizes why she just left Brittany's bedroom this morning. It's because people like Annie Pierce make Santana feel less than worthy. People like Annie Pierce remind her of her father and make her believe that the world will always see her as a disappointment and that she can't give anything to anybody. People like Annie Pierce take things that matter to Santana away and tell her she doesn't deserve them.

She left Brittany alone with her love because she's afraid that Mayor Pierce is right and that one day, Brittany will open her eyes and see that she is nothing. That just like her parents, the love will fade away like the rain. That Brittany will eventually step out of her magical world and see that there are better things out there than Santana Lopez.

Only, Santana thinks, these thoughts are just thoughts. Not even that. These thoughts are false truths created by the insecurity of being left behind. The reason she would be left behind would be her own fault. By walking out of Brittany's bedroom this morning and not saying anything not even a 'thank you for loving me', she left a better part of her in that room, the part of her that Brittany brings out and the part of her that is the best side of her that has ever been.

Pulling Aunt Linda's truck to the curb, she comes to the conclusion that, although Brittany was pleading with her to love her back she mostly begging her to let her love her. It's strange, this feeling in Santana's gut. The one that tells her that, in some way, Brittany would be happy if Santana just let her love her. Is it really that easy though, to accept love without understanding or even knowing your own feelings? What she does understand is that, however or whatever her feelings towards Brittany, she doesn't want the feeling of knowing someone loves her to go away.

She's stalking up the steps of the Knox City Hall Building before she realizes what she's doing. Her eyes quickly scan the directory on the main floor until an elevator door opening on the other side catches her attention. She spots that woman that always seems to be following the mayor around like a puppy. She's seen her around at a few places and has caught her staring a bunch of times. So, before she slips into the elevator, she makes sure that this woman doesn't spot her. When the elevator doors open on the desired floor, Santana makes her way to the Mayor's office. It's empty, which she figures is suitable for what is about to go down.

She doesn't knock on the door and doesn't announce herself. When she pushes the large wooden door open Mrs. Pierce glances up, obviously expecting someone else and she does her best to conceal her surprise upon seeing Santana.

"Are you lost?" Mayor Peirce asks with some bite. "Doesn't smell like a garage in here, so I'm sad to say Brittany isn't here." She sends her a patronizing smile.

"Actually, I came here to talk to you." Santana tells the older woman.

"Oh? What about then?" She feigns interest and goes back to the paper work on her desk. Santana looks on as the woman pays no mind to her presence and shifts her feet at how little the mayor could care that the girl she despises is standing in her office.

"Well, before you say anything about what I'm about to say..." She starts, trying to figure out the best way to begin. "Just don't interrupt me." This catches the mayor's attention and her head snaps up from her files and she sends an annoyed quirked eyebrow in the teenage girl's direction.

"Do you usually go around to people's offices and boss them around? Look little girl, I have work to do here..."

"Just shut up and listen okay? It's about Brittany." Santana snaps, instantly making Mayor Pierce's eyebrow's furrow and mouth to clamp shut. "She's... truth is, your daughter is the most beautiful person I have _ever _met. Not just on the outside. Her heart is so big and so open. And even though some people say you shouldn't lead with your heart because that's how you get hurt, that's exactly how she lives; heart forward and it's inspiring." She explains inspiringly and then she huffs in frustration at the way Mrs. Pierce simply stares back at her with a blank expression. "You're _so blind_ and the worse part about that is that it's towards your own daughter." She points at the woman behind the desk forcefully. "I look at Brittany and I'm reminded of all the things worth smiling about. When she laughs I laugh because even if I don't get why she has that sparkle in her eye at that moment I _want_ to know. I _need_ to know. "I get that your life might not be the way you imagined it to be, I don't think it ever is. Or maybe it's exactly what you thought it'd be. Either way... you're wasting the best part of your life away. Brittany is an amazing person and I for one am a better person for knowing that about her." Santana explains with exhaustion but such sincerity that it makes her heart nearly ache. "She makes me _want_ to be a better person than I have been. I can say from experience that, that's a feat in itself. I don't think there are a lot of people we'd willingly change ourselves for. Not a lot of people make you want to change."

She shrugs her shoulders and can only stare back as Mrs. Pierce slowly leans back in her chair, clearly paying deep attention to the girl who has intruded her office. It's quiet between them for a few moments and Santana is wondering if it's because she told the mayor not to interrupt her and that she is being judged on, not only what she is saying, but how she is saying it.

"Now maybe I'm just some kid who's a strike away from juvie to you. Maybe everyone just sees me as this screw up and maybe I am. But, Brittany doesn't see those things. If she does, it's not the only thing she sees about me and I don't want that to go away. She's my best friend and I can't lose her. I just can't. So, you can do whatever you want to me. You can threaten me and go through my files, try to intimidate me but it's not gonna make me go away. I'm not goin' away."

Before Mayor Pierce can even bat an eyelash, Santana spins on her heels and quickly makes her way as far as possible from the Knox City Town Hall building. She can't believe she's just done what she's done. But, she figures, if someone was going to do it, she's glad it was her.

* * *

><p>Santana had noticed when Brittany was home from the shop. She saw the lights in her bedroom go on and off a bunch of times. But each time she thought about going over to apologize for leaving without saying anything, she realized that didn't know <em>what<em> to say. Words, they just don't feel like enough to explain herself and why she does the things she does. She doesn't know how to explain to Brittany why there are some things she can't say and that she may never be able to say them.

She doesn't know that feeling. Santana doesn't understand _that_ feeling that everyone talks about when they talk about love. She wonders if it's an obvious feeling. Is it something that she should know by now and is it something that she would have recognized when Brittany told her she loved her. She's afraid that she's broken and that she is unable to comprehend or incapable of feeling anything more than this fear that is coursing through her veins. As she goes over her downfalls, she wonders if… if everything she is looking to understand is right there on the surface.

Carefully, she slips from her bed and tip toes to her window. When she lifts it open she is greeted by droplets of rain coming from the sky. She reaches her hand out and catches some in her palm, letting her fingers rub the wetness into her skin. She smiles, the rain is warm and it reminds her of the summer. She maneuvers herself from her bedroom window and over the metal fence between the two yards until she is standing there on the side of the Pierce's house.

It's then that she realizes, with the raindrops falling softly around her and the clouds pushing against one another. Both Quinn and Brittany are right. She can see it sometimes, even though she denies it to no end. She can even feel it. No matter how long it's been, the years and the miles, that little girl resides somewhere inside of her.

Maybe she hides somewhere beneath the rubble and debris of broken hearts and promises. But, her sparkling brown eyes still light up magically and her smile as radiant as ever. Maybe it hurts to let go sometimes, but she's beginning to understand that it's much more painful to hold on. Crying hearts of her shattered family is no reason for her to push everything else away. It's no use carrying around the baggage that people hand her in form of judgments based on not only her pasts, but truths about her that she cannot change. The obstacle in her way wasn't her family or Mrs. Pierce or the people of Knox whispering or anyone else in the world. It's been her all along. Santana has been standing in her own way. She's been too busy to notice something that's been in front of her the entire time.

Brittany lies awake in her bed. It's well past two in the morning, but instead of sleep all her body can seem to do is replay the day she had with Santana. Intense. That's the word to describe it. It had gone from innocent laughter, touches and looks to not so innocent looks and touches, among other things. Her thoughts are disturbed by the sound of something other than rain hitting her bedroom window. She gets up to investigate, flipping the light switch on her way to the window.

There, standing just outside is Santana Lopez, in the rain looking at her through her bedroom window. She doesn't need to be told to come outside, she doesn't need a wave or a motion to direct her, her body moves of its own accord. Silently yet quickly pulls her window all the way up and climbs out, her feet squish against the wet ground. When she gets her balance, she stands straight up and comes face to face with Santana.

Santana is soaked from head to toe, arms at her side and her feet shoulder width apart. They don't say anything, they don't have to, their eyes are having the conversation for them. Brown eyes look softly into blues with intrigue and complete understanding. Santana's lips part slightly as though she is going to speak but she doesn't, she merely sucks in some air.

Then, as if they have said everything they needed to, Brittany smiles. It's small, perhaps just a hint of a smile, but it's there and Santana nods once making the water cascade down her cheeks and over her eyelashes. She extends her hand and patiently waits for Brittany's decision, but, there is no hesitation in grabbing Santana's hand.

"I thought that I was supposed to… I never do the right thing." Santana huffs in frustration through the rain. "Like, ever. I do what I want and that usually ends up hurting people. And it's funny because," She pauses and looks down at the hand she's holding. "I feel like if I do what I want, then you're gonna get hurt. If I push you away or stay away from you, then, whatever. But… it's weird." She closes her eyes and shakes her head. "'Cause, like, it's actually the opposite. I want you close to me, and if it's the wrong thing then I don't wanna be right. Wow." She shakes her head again at herself and chuckles deeply. "And now I sound like some horrible country song. But, I guess it's fitting. I feel like wanting you to stay is selfish because it makes me…" She looks back up at Brittany. "You make me a better me. I don't know how you do it, but you do it and flawlessly. Did you know that? And I laugh more. Actually, I think you're the only person besides me that can make me find humor in the world. Of course your humor is a bit kinder and gentler and reminds me that I'm just a kid. And… regardless…" She pauses, smiles and Brittany looks on quietly. "You're beautiful, you know that? Like, you're really beautiful. I feel like you're that kind of beautiful that people try to write. But, it's impossible because words can't do a beauty like you justice. Words are… obsolete. They don't mean anything compared to someone as… you… and then here I am again. Stumbling over things to say to you because nothing feels good enough and nothing makes sense. And then I don't know what to do." She shrugs her shoulders and the rain continues to pour down on them.

"You could kiss me." Brittany finally speaks up in a small voice that Santana can just hear over the rain.

Santana lifts her head and opens her eyes. She knows the tears shimmering in Brittany's eyes are mirroring her own and she smiles sadly. They continue to sway from side to side, hands clasped and set between their chests. Her thumb grazes the back of Brittany's and she tilts her head, trying to avert her eyes from glancing down at the way her chin quivers.

"Why do you do that?" Santana asks in a giggle as she shifts under her stare, not uncomfortably but uncertainly.

"So that you know that I like it… this feeling you make me feel." Brittany says. "And so maybe we can stop pretending that the kisses and all those almost kisses in between and that the other day didn't happen." Brittany walks closer. "And so that we can just be kissing again."

"But, your mom…"

"Who cares about my mom?" Brittany interrupts and shakes her head as she steps towards Santana. "You once told me that you thought I could do anything." She places her hands at Santana's waist.

"I also once told you that you could make the jump from the shed to the kiddy pool. Remember what happened?" Santana reminds her and they both chuckle, but its short lived as soon as Brittany's lips press to hers. It's a chaste kiss; short and sweet. When Brittany pulls back, she's smiling because Santana's eyes are still closed and her expression is relaxed but seemingly troubled.

"Say somethin'." Brittany breathes out. Santana's eyes open and she stares back at the other girl, letting the quiet of the rain drown into their moment, taking over the conversation.

"This is why." Santana breaks their silence and Brittany's brow furrows in confusion. Santana lets out a nervous laugh and shakes her head. "Why I kept you at arm's length." She explains in still a vague manner. "I knew that once I let you in," She takes a deep breath and tries to blink away the blur from her eyes. "I'd never wanna let you go." Brittany smiles. It's sad and happy all at the same time. The twinkle in her blue eyes tells Santana that Brittany's known this all along.

"So, don't." Brittany tells her lacing her fingers through Santana's and lifts their joined hands a bit higher, until she can press her thumb affectionately into Santana's chin.

"Is it really that simple?" Santana challenges.

"I love you, Santana." Brittany lets out in a breath, and she shakes her head as though trying to be sure all her words are in order. "More than I've ever loved anyone else in this world. Because of that," She shrugs her shoulders. "I think anything is possible." Santana's smile grows and her eyes search Brittany's in utter amazement.

"When did you get so smart?" She asks as she taps the tip of Brittany's nose.

Brittany lets out an airy laugh and looks down at their bodies, pressed close to one another, swaying along as if to faint music playing from the clouds in the form of rain drops. Without another word, Santana moves to the tip of her toes and wraps her arm around Brittany's neck, pulling her into a tighter embrace and rests her chin to her shoulder.

"You're my best friend." Santana admits quietly, as though she's only just realized this fact and the weight to it. Brittany smiles, closes her eyes, relieved.

"Yeah. Me too." She holds Santana tighter to her body.

As they stand there holding one another, Santana realizes something that she has been too scared to accept. Brittany loves her and _she_ loves Brittany back. It's been here all along. That feeling. The person. It's like the Texas night sky she was reacquainted with. The stars were there the whole time, she was just too busy to notice something standing right in front of her. Her eyes are open now and she sees it. She sees it all. More importantly, she feels it all.

And this is the moment that takes her breath away.


	11. Chapter 11

**Would Always Hold Her Heart**

_**October, 2010**_

_A knock at the door pulls Linda's attention from the television. For a moment she hopes she is just hearing things because she has been waiting all day at work to see the next twisted plot of All My Children unfold. But when another knock comes she huffs and places her cup of decaffeinated coffee down on the table. She checks the clock as she makes her way to the door and wonders who could be bothering her at what everyone around here considers to be way too late for unannounced visitors. _

_There is a well-known form of respect for not disturbing families at home between the hours of five-thirty and seven, which is supper time. It's a basic understanding that families are sitting around their dinner table having their own special bonding time. And anything after eight is unacceptable. Of course for Linda Lopez, this time is scheduled for her to bond with Erica Kane and the Chandlers in Pine Valley._ _Her brow furrows when she recognizes sunny blonde hair on the other side of the screen door. It's Brittany. She knows this before she even opens the door and she wonders what this unexpected visit is for._

_"Hey Britt." Linda greets with a small and confused smile. Brittany's head hangs as she replies in a soft voice. "What is it? Are you okay?" Linda instantly turns from welcoming neighbor to concerned adult and steps out to her porch to grab one of Brittany's shoulders gently and lifts her chin up with the other. Brittany is crying. Her cheeks are all red and her nose is a bit runny. "Honey, what's happened?" She asks and takes a quick glance around to find the culprit in making Brittany Pierce, a known ray of sunshine twenty-four seven, turn into a puddle of tears. Brittany mumbles something, but Linda finds it hard to understand the words through her blubbery whispering. _

_"I need someone to talk to." Brittany repeats when she doesn't get any sort of response from the older woman. Linda's face softens and she moves her hands come down to rub up and down the teenager's arms. "And I lost my key, but no one is home... and..." She starts to cry again and Linda pulls her into a hug. "I don't know." _

_Linda soothes her with gentle whispers and rubs circles to her back as she holds her tightly. She ushers them both inside and doesn't even give a look to her television set that is in the midst of a love quadrangle at the Pine Valley Inn. This real life moment is far more important than Erica Kane and her fiftieth husband._

_"Sweetie," Linda starts once she closes the door and leads them down the hall. "Just tell me what happened and then I can help you." She explains. "Start from the beginning." It was the same thing her own mother would tell her whenever she got upset. But this only makes Brittany cry more. "Shh, it'll be okay. Whatever it is, it will all work out."_

_"It won't." She sobs and her face gets covered by her hands. _

_"It can't be that awful, honey." Linda assures her only it doesn't stop the tears. She twists her lips to try and remember what else it was that her mother would say to her, but she is coming up blank. _

"_**It is**__ and if my mother finds out about everythin'…" Brittany whimpers, sounding as if she is too scared to even finish that sentence. _

_Linda rubs circles on Brittany's back a few more times before she gets up from the couch and goes into the kitchen. One thing she does remember is her mother used to always get her a big glass of water whenever she was really upset. She didn't know the reason behind it or there even was a reason. But, she does recall being able to calm down a bit easier while holding a glass of water. _

_When she returns, Brittany is still sitting in the same position at the edge of the couch cushion with her head in her hands. She carefully takes the spot beside the girl, making sure not to disturb her, afraid that one wrong movement will catapult Brittany back into her heaving sobs. Aunt Linda grabs one of Brittany's hands from her cheek and sets the full glass of water into her hand._

"_Thank you." Brittany sputters and instantly brings the glass to her lips. _

_Aunt Linda watches her sip and then take a gulp, patiently waiting for her to gather herself up enough to explain herself. Brittany takes a few deep breathes as she sets the bottom of the glass into her empty palm, gripping it hard at the side with the other. _

"_I'm failin' History." Brittany starts after a few more sips of water. "I'm failin' basically everything." She half laughs and looks over at Linda who offers a smile that shows she's listening. "Everyone just… expects things from me. My parents, mostly my mother, and guys from school and my coach." Brittany's chest stutters with some sobs she does her best to control. Linda's brow furrows and she leans in, resting a gentle hand at Brittany's back. "And this weekend I was at this party." She sniffles some more. "I'm __**always**__ at a party." She explains in a sort of defeated tone. _

"_Brittany," Linda tilts her head as the girl's name softly falls from her lips. "Did somethin' happen at this party?" She asks with much concern. Brittany's lips purse, her eyes fall to the glass of water in her hands and she shrugs._

"_Miss Linda," Brittany slowly says before lifting her gaze to meet the woman's eyes beside her. "What do you think is the most important thing to have? Like, in life." She wonders and Linda is a little taken back by the line of questioning. Linda looks around the room for a moment, the soap opera playing soundlessly across the screen a momentary distraction._

"_Happiness I 'spose." Linda offers and Brittany's head hangs as she nods it in understanding. "If you don't have that, well, I'd think you can't have much of anythin' else." She reasons and gives Brittany a small smile of hope._

"_Not even love?" Brittany worries. Linda thinks about this for a moment before giving an answer._

"_Well, I believe that love can sometimes give us the happiness we've been searchin' for." Linda says and Brittany stares back at her, obviously waiting for more. "But, we have to be willin' to do what it takes to find it. Sometimes love is a mystery and sometimes it's as clear as day." Linda tells her. "Is this about a boy?" She asks wondering if this talk of love has something to do with a boy at school._

"_My mother thinks that the most important thing for a girl like me is to focus on boys and cheerleadin'. I try… I try to make her happy and show her that I want to be her perfect little girl…" Brittany replies as she lifts the glass to her lips once again and takes a tiny sip. "I've been with a lot of the boys at school." She says in an almost whisper and it's without much shame, just disappointment. "But, I don't want to anymore." Linda's eyes widen a bit at this information. "Sometimes I wish I __**was**__ a boy." Brittany pouts, holding her glass of water close to her. Linda laughs and playfully taps at the young girl's shoulder, she's somewhat appreciative for her unintentional comic relief. "They have it so much easier."_

_"Why wish to be a boy when being a girl is way more fun?" Linda wonders and receives a confused look from Brittany. "First of all, we are prettier than boys. Second, we get to dress up and ain't nothin' more fun than puttin' on a party dress and doin' your hair and gettin' your nails done." Brittany shrugs and looks down into her cup. _

"_I guess." Brittany mumbles. Linda lets out a small sigh, taps Brittany's leg and pushes herself up from the couch._

"_I know what'll help make you feel better." Linda announces as she momentarily vanishes into the kitchen. Within seconds Linda comes back out carrying a tub of ice cream and two spoons. "Treats and a movie always make me feel at ease." This time Brittany smiles and it's one of those real smiles. It's not a big megawatt smile, but it's something. _

"_How old were you when you first had sex?" Brittany asks and Linda coughs the bite of ice cream she'd just taken. She covers her mouth with the back of her hand until she can speak with no food in her mouth._

"_Oh." Linda is once again thrown off by Brittany's openness and she mumbles a few grunts to herself as her eyes search everywhere else. When her eyes finally do land back to Brittany, Linda realizes that the young girl beside her isn't anxiously waiting for a response. Those blue eyes are looking deeply into the tub of ice cream looking for her next spoonful. "Wh-what?" _

"_I mean, I don't really know what the big deal is." She admits innocently. "Grownups always say you've gotta be in love first. But, what if I don't find love until I'm old?" She wonders and Linda regards her with a gentle smile and a soft sigh. She remembers being young and lost in the world of being not being a kid anymore but not quite being an adult yet. "Whenever I ask my mother questions about sex she changes the subject and then my dad gets all red and uncomfortable." Brittany points out figuring that Linda might ask whether or not she's tried having these types of conversations with her parents. "I've done it already and it wasn't like they make it seem in the movies. I tried to explain it to Quinn but she just ignores me. Oh, and Quinn started this celibacy club at school. I don't really know what that means but all she keeps talkin' 'bout is absence and how it's the safest form of teen pregnancy prevention." She shrugs and Linda does her best not to chuckle._

"_Well, Quinn __**does**__ have the right idea." Linda finally jumps in. "Waitin' to have sex is important especially when you're young."_

"_How long did you wait for?" Brittany asks. Linda twists her lips and slightly clenches her jaw. "Is it bad that I didn't wait? Quinn thinks so." _

_It's a bit unnerving having a sex talk with someone else's child. But, she knows from what Brittany has just told her that no matter how much she tries to her parents will be of no use on the subject. So, with that in mind and a very impressionable young girl sitting in front of her, Linda decides to give her the information she would have wanted at this age._

"_Sometimes, Brittany, people have sex for lots of different reasons." Linda says as she takes a seat beside Brittany on the couch. "Sometimes it's 'cause they feel alone and they want to feel close to someone. Sometimes they do it to get back at someone for somethin' which is not always a good idea. Sometimes they do it just to do it." Brittany stares back at her, absorbing all of the information being given to her. "As girls, we always imagine our first time to be amazing. Movies and television make us believe it's goin' to be this life changin' moment. But, it's not." Brittany slightly frowns and nods. "I mean, it __**can**__ be those things but only with the right person." She clarifies which prompts a small smile of hope from Brittany._

_Before Brittany can ask any more questions about sex or anything worse, if there even is a worse, Linda suggests they watch a movie and have a girl's night until Brittany's parents get home. She puts on her all-time favorite movie with the hope that perhaps it will help Brittany with some of her questions about love and sex and perhaps other things. She smiles to herself when Brittany gets sad at the parts she got sad at and the parts that she herself as a young girl awed at._

_The ice cream tub sits on the coffee table with the two spoons, completely forgotten about. The movie had captured Brittany's attention, leaving her at the edge of her seat for what was to come next. Linda smiled softly to herself as the last scene came up, it was one of her favorite parts. At the ding of a bell, the screen goes to black followed by the credits._

_"But..." Brittany sits up straight and holds the remote tightly in her hands. "What happened?" She asks._

_"That's the end of the movie." Linda chuckles and tells her as she wipes some tears from her eyes._

_"What kind of ending is that?" Brittany spits out._

_"I said it was the end of the movie, but that doesn't mean it's the end of their story." Linda explains._

_"But...?"_

_"Remember he said that once the bell rings that means everything is going to be okay?" Brittany nods but is still troubled. "Well, the bell rang so everything is okay."_

_"What does that even mean? Where's the happy ending? Where's the sunset and...?" Brittany rambles and it makes Aunt Linda laugh._

_"The ending is the best part of the movie." Aunt Linda comments with amusement. "The plane ride is a metaphor for their relationship. They don't really know where they are going and they don't know what's going to happen on the way there." She continues. "But, they're in it together and that's all that matters."_

"_So that's how the story ends? On a plane?" Brittany asks not at all happy about the abrupt ending. Linda chuckles a little more._

"_It's not how the story ends, it's just how the movie ends." Linda says. "Love stories don't have an ending."_

* * *

><p>'<strong>L' Is for the Way You Look at Me<strong>

_**February/March, 2012**_

"_So_," Santana looks around the room as she tip toes from the window to the bed. "Are we_ really_ all alone?" Brittany nods with a tight lipped grin and pulls back her covers.

"My mom left super early and my dad's gone for the day at the dealership." She explains and moves to the edge of the bed reaching out for Santana's hand. "They'll be gone for hours." Santana smiles and allows herself to be pulled closer.

"Hmmm…" Santana hums and wraps her arms around Brittany's neck when she feels arms circle her waist. "_What _should we do?" She asks with a quirked eyebrow. Brittany giggles and presses her lips to Santana's.

"I can think of a few things." She mumbles and bunches Santana's shirt in her hands.

"_Oh_?" Santana lifts her head, kisses the corner of Brittany's mouth and then leans back to watch hands, not her own, lift her shirt up.

"Mhmm." Brittany nods as she shuffles down in her spot and lowers her head to press her lips to the skin just below Santana's belly button where the top of her pajama shorts start. Santana watches three little kisses happen and then blue eyes are looking up at her. "And all of those things require you to be wearin' fewer clothes." Santana grins wildly and quickly moves her hands to the hem of her own shirt and peels it off. Within seconds of it off, she pulls Brittany by the back of the neck and kisses her hard.

"I like the way you think." She breathes out onto Brittany's lips as she straddles her.

Brittany's hands come to rest at the small of Santana's back, her fingers pressing into her skin as their lips move against each other. They smile into their kisses, their heads tilting to the side for a better angle. Santana's hands move Brittany's hair to one shoulder, tugging on it affectionately as she shuffles on her knees to bring her body closer to Brittany's. The sound of the front door opening and shutting brings the kissing to a halt. Their eyes pop open and their lips still.

"I thought no one was comin' home." Santana rushes out in a whisper and pulls herself away from Brittany.

"They weren't supposed to be." Brittany responds with just as much haste, but her hands instantly miss the feeling of Santana's skin.

"So, what am I…?" Santana looks around and runs her fingers through her hair. "What am I supposed to do?" She asks and looks over at Brittany when she is blindsided by her shirt getting thrown at her, hitting her square in the face. "Window it is." Santana blurts out and heads to the open window with her shoes and top in her hand.

"Wait, what?" Brittany breathes out and jumps up from the bed to walk over to Santana who is clutching her shirt to her chest. "Don't go. My mom probably won't even come in my room." She explains with a wave of her hand.

"You know what'll happen if your mom catches me in here?" Santana says in a hushed voice. "Like _this_." She adds, hoisting her leg up onto the window sill before looking back at Brittany who looks flustered and worried. "Look, I'm sorry." Santana tells her, sending a quick glance to the closed bedroom door. "I just know that if she catches me in here at this time, she'll have a fit. She'll assume…"

"Assume what exactly?" Brittany asks defensively. Santana looks down at the crumpled shirt in her hands, fighting the urge to drop it and stay with Brittany regardless of the repercussions. "I'm gonna tell her. I know that's what you're thinking. And I'm gonna tell her." Brittany assures her with a forced nod. "I promise."

"It's…" Santana hangs her head and shrugs. "What's to tell, Britt?" She challenges, lifting her gaze to find Brittany's blues a bit startled. "We…" Her head shakes, trying to find the words, but everything she thinks of is wrong and mean and not at all what she really wants to say to Brittany. "Look, I'll… just see you later." Brittany half smiles, nods and gives her a quick kiss goodbye.

Brittany watches long enough to see Santana hop over onto her side of the chain linked fence and then turns her attention when she hears sounds coming from the kitchen. She quickly pulls her shirt over her head and smoothes her hands over the fabric before she pulls her bedroom door open.

As she makes her way down the hall she can hear her mother on an official Knox City Council phone call. She gives her a quick wave and a small smile when she enters the kitchen and decides on making herself a snack. Once she is fixed with some apple slices and the most recent issue of US Weekly, she takes a seat at the kitchen table doing her best to ignore the ramblings of her mother.

"What're these?" Brittany asks when her magazine browsing is disrupted by her mother tossing a stack of papers on top of it. She hadn't even realized that her mother had gotten off of the phone with whoever it was she was barking orders at.

"You think you know your little friend _so_ well." Mrs. Pierce sneers and moves about the kitchen as if she hadn't just interrupted her daughter's musings.

Brittany puts her snack down and picks up the pages, instantly realizing that they are printed copies of Santana's Facebook page. She knew about Santana's Facebook page including the comments and the pictures. That night at Holly's café Santana practically begged her to log into the social site since she was not allowed to at Aunt Linda's. It was just to see if her friend Puck had messaged her or posted a comment on her wall, but there was nothing from the boy.

"Why'm I lookin' at these?" She wonders, thumbing through the statuses swiftly. "Why do _you_ have these?"

"Maybe by lookin' at them you'll finally open your eyes and see what I see." Annie tells her daughter.

"And what is that exactly?" Brittany sighs and tosses the Facebook print outs onto the kitchen table where her mother is now sitting.

"That Santana Lopez is not the same little girl you knew way back when. She's a bad influence and I won't have you hangin' around a person of such poor character." She explains and Brittany rolls her eyes.

"She's _not_ a bad influence, Mom. Nobody makes me do anythin' I don't wanna do. You should know that out of anyone." Brittany spits back.

"If her pictures are anythin' to go by, followed by the astoundin' amount of comments left on each scantily clad photo, she is clearly a…a… a promiscuous girl who is too deep into the party scene." Mrs. Pierce says. "There are insinuations of drug use and… and I don't want my daughter to be around someone like her."

"She's not at all what you think." Brittany tries to defend but her mother just laughs at her.

"I assure you my dear, she is not at all what _you_ think." Annie counters.

"Everybody thinks she's a bad person, but she's _not_." Brittany's voice raises and strains as she desperately tries to express to her mother that Santana Lopez is a much better person than anyone, even Santana herself, realizes.

It is beginning to become exhausting to be the only one who can see what a truly amazing person Santana is. Before she can continue on about how wrong her mother is when it comes to Santana, the phone rings and Annie is quick to answer it. Brittany can tell that it's the office again and huffs with a roll of her eyes as her mother walks out of the room, easily forgetting that she was in a serious conversation with her daughter.

Instead of gaining ground on telling her mother about the real relationship she has with Santana, she hears the _Mayor_ get just as serious about the re-opening of the old drive-in movie theater. Rather than continue to listen to her mother care more about how much revenue opening the old drive-in would be for Knox, Brittany decides to head out to the garage earlier than she had originally planned to clear her head.

* * *

><p>Quinn looks down at her phone. It's been going off <em>all<em> morning. She glances both ways before she crosses the street, ever so slowly making her way to her destination. Santana's been sending her texts since before nine and she cannot help but wonder what sort of drama is waiting. Of course it could be a number of interesting things that has her out and about before noon on a Saturday, with Santana, it's always interesting.

The last time Santana asked for some alone time with Quinn it was to vent about home life and the two sat in Quinn's truck passing a bottle of liquor between them in a deserted field. But today, Quinn does not know what to expect and so to find out she is meeting Santana at Holly's Daze for coffee on the patio which is not exactly atmosphere for getting teary eyed and 'woe is me'.

She spots her friend sitting alone at one of the four top patio tables. Santana is nervously bouncing her leg that is crossed at the knee and she has her sunglasses on as if she is incognito. Her lips are pursed which tells Quinn that she is thinking and maybe even a bit worried. That or she is just impatiently waiting for Quinn to arrive.

"One of those better be for me." Quinn comments once she gets close enough to the patio table Santana is sitting at. Santana looks over her shoulder and smirks while she moves one of the two coffees in front of her towards one of the empty chairs.

"_And_ filled with a ridiculous, most likely unhealthy, amount of sugar just the way you like it." Santana grins.

"Yummy." Quinn claps as she moves to sit in the sit across from Santana. She sips her drink and hums out in its perfection. "_So_," She takes another tiny taste. "Why were you stalkin' my life this mornin'?"

"We had sex." Santana blurts out.

"_What_?" Quinn nearly chokes on her coffee, spitting some of it out which then dribbles down her chin. Quickly, she grabs a napkin and wipes herself clean, all the while staring back at Santana with wide eyes.

"Me and…" Santana starts, but then looks around before continuing. "We had sex." She repeats nervously, this time in a whisper and Quinn rolls her eyes. "It was, like, a few weeks ago by this lake that Brittany goes to alone. And it was raining and she looked so pretty and." Santana rambles, waving her hand as she speaks as if to make up for any stuttering that may pop out, also, she is trying to make the information light and not a big deal. "So, yeah, we did it."

"I heard you the first time." Quinn says with a wave of her hand. "_How_? _No_!" She shakes her head before Santana can explain, which would most likely be in detail, and thinks carefully about how to word her question. "I mean… I don't know… that's awesome?" Santana quirks an eyebrow, a bit dumbfounded at her friend's reaction.

"Well, that's _all _I'm giving you." Santana tells her when she realizes Quinn is waiting for more details. "So…"

"I gotta be honest, I was expectin' _somethin'_ on the Brittany-and-Santana-will-they-or-won't-they storyline, but…" Quinn raises her eyebrows and carefully sips on her hot beverage. "What's wrong?" Quinn asks and tilts her head as she waits for a response. Santana's eyebrows rise at how intuitive Quinn Fabray is.

"I _don't know_, I just…" Santana mutters, trying to gain control of the conversation before Quinn starts rambling about topics Santana isn't quite sure she's ready to venture into.

"You_ just_ what?" Quinn interrupts Santana's thought process, making her huff in response.

"She said she loves me." Santana says quietly, her eyes focus on the tiny pull in the sleeve of her coffee cup. "Like, that she's _in_ love with me." She sucks her lips in and gently bites on them before looking back up at Quinn who is staring back at her with her own coffee cup close to her mouth. "I mean, I've had fuck buddies before. But, they never really…" Santana thinks out loud but is cut off.

"Meant anythin'." Quinn offers.

"Are you gonna to keep finishing my sentences?" Santana spits out in frustration.

"When they're that obvious?" Quinn quirks an eyebrow. "Yes." She laughs and Santana loosens up a little and it helps lift the tension. "So, she's _more_ than that?" She suggests in a knowing manner rather than in a questioning way. "More than a 'fuck buddy' I mean." Quinn clarifies and Santana's expression falls for a moment.

"I guess." Santana replies. "What?" Santana blurts out self-consciously when she realizes that Quinn is staring at her with a goofy grin on her face

"_You're _smitten." Quinn leans over the table and pokes her friend in the cheek, but, her hand is quickly batted away. "Just a smitten kitten."

"_Enough_." Santana waves her hands to stop the torture of being posed as a cute little pile of mush, even if it is true. "I've hooked up with a lot of people back home but none of them ever made me want to go back for seconds. Well, on purpose." She reasons and shrugs.

"_Wow_, that's romantic." Quinn laughs.

"I'll have you know that I am _chock full_ of romance." Santana defends and crosses her arms over her chest.

"_And_ hormones." Quinn adds with a wide smile and a quirked eyebrow. "I don't get it, what's wrong?" Santana sighs and shakes her head.

"It's…. it was a _long_ couple of months, let's be serious." Santana defends. "A very long couple of months." She shivers at her dry spell. "But, with Brittany, it was… it was _different_." She sighs out, the fact of the matter completely throwing her off. Quinn watches her for a moment, taking in the somewhat surprise and tiny disappointment in her friend's tone.

"Well, isn't it always?" Quinn says more than asks and Santana looks at her with confusion. "Brittany makes _everythin_' different. She opens your eyes and makes you see things you couldn't see before. She makes things special. She makes things…" Quinn trails off when she notices a familiar powder blue truck drive onto Main Street behind Santana.

"Better." Santana finishes her friend's sentence, her own stare focused on her coffee cup.

"_So_," Quinn slowly starts, her eyes move back to Santana who is squirming in her chair. "Are you girlfriends yet?" She asks and Santana nearly chokes on her coffee.

"Definitely _not _girlfriends." Santana assures her friend with an annoyed chuckle. Quinn rolls her eyes and once more looks over Santana's shoulder to see that the powder blue truck is gone.

"Is that what the problem is?" Quinn asks, her words coming out light and a little humor in them. Santana's lips twist and her eyes stay trained on the way her hand is moving the cup along the table. "Well, then what are you doin' with her?" Quinn wonders with a wave of her hand. "I mean, other than _doin'_ her?" Santana coughs into her hand and shifts in her seat some more which only makes Quinn huff and sigh in frustration. It's like asking a kid if they broke something when they clearly did only they won't admit it. "_What_? You can't tell me somethin' like that and then expect me to just go on about my day. This is kind of excitin'." She pauses for a moment, as if trying to recall anything as interesting as her two best friends getting together, but comes up short.

"How is this excitin' for you?" Santana asks.

"How is it not? It's like a fairytale." Quinn beams. "Childhood friends cross each other's path after five years and fall in love. It's… well, it's kinda beautiful." She watches her words wash over and through Santana and she smirks. "Have you told her yet?" Santana's eyes flicker up to Quinn's and her jaw slightly clenches. Quinn doesn't need a response because the glimmer in Santana's eyes is answer enough.

"Told her _what_?" Santana brushes off the question and leans her elbow comfortably on the arm of the metal patio chair.

"That you're in love with her." Quinn clarifies, though, she figured it was fairly obvious and says it so. Santana again does not respond only providing, what Quinn believes to be, very informative silence. "Guess not. Explains why you look so weird. You're constipated with feeling's." Santana moves in her seat and looks away, shaking her head slightly from side to side.

Santana's not shaking her head because Quinn is wrong. Santana shakes her head because, somehow, even with her evading the subject at all costs, Quinn has managed to figure out the puzzle with only a few pieces.

"People say things all the time, doesn't mean anything." Santana comments, yet Quinn only hears that she has not denied anything.

"And you don't wanna say it, 'cause, you won't mean it?" Quinn asks and Santana avoids her eyes. "Or are you just worried that Brittany didn't mean it?"

"I'm not sure." Santana groans into her coffee. Truth is she's been trying her best _not_ to think, at least not for the past couple of hours. "There's just this big rock in the shape of Mayor Pierce that's in the way of everythin'." She reminds her friend. "I had to sneak out of her bedroom this morning and it's like… if her mom knew anything then she'd be, like, grounded for eternity or sent to live in a nunnery or, I don't know… worse."

"What's worse than either of those things?" Quinn wonders the life of both options.

"Mrs. Pierce sees right through me." Santana points out. "I'm sure she knows things about me that not even my parents are aware of." She shakes her head, imagining Annie Pierce in some secret lair surrounded by files upon files about her mishaps and devious adventures back in Boston.

"Is that the reason you're here with me right now and not with Brittany?" Quinn asks. Santana sighs and leans her chin in her hand, resting her elbow on the table. "Somethin' tells me that you'd rather be wherever it was you were with Brittany this mornin' than sittin' here with me drinkin' coffee and worryin' about things that don't really matter."

Santana looks over Quinn's shoulder as a few pickup trucks drive by and random Knox City folk wander happily in the morning sun. She thinks about the past couple of weeks, months and soon she's brought herself back to the seat she's sitting in across from Quinn wondering how the hell she got here.

When Santana gets home from coffee with Quinn she grabs the mail from the mailbox. It's mostly out of habit ever since she figured out that she could intercept her report card before her parents got home. Now, it's mostly her just trying to be a good niece and guest for Aunt Linda. She likes to think that bringing in the mail constitutes as a chore of some sort.

She flips through the envelopes and magazines, but like always, there is nothing for her in the pile. Honestly, she's not even looking for anything addressed to her, she's mostly snooping and wants to see what Aunt Linda gets in the mail. This time however, she finds that the second to last envelope has her name on it. Not only is it addressed to her, but she recognizes the handwriting.

Santana walks through the front door, tosses her keys into the basket by the table beside the front door and moves into the living room. She sets the rest of the mail down onto the coffee table and stands in the middle of the room for a moment. Aunt Linda should be home any minute and Santana certainly doesn't want any questions, so, she decides to head into her room before opening the envelope.

After shutting the door to her bedroom, she holds the envelope with both hands. She twists her lips, not quite sure if she wants to know what is on the inside. There are so many things she is expecting. But, on the same note, so many things that she isn't expecting. Her eyes lift and instantly fall to the window across the way.

Brittany's window.

Santana takes a deep breath, lets it out slowly, and walks over to her bed where she takes a seat right at the edge. She slips her index finger under a space in the flap and tugs it open. As she thought, it's a letter inside. Before reading, she turns it over to see that it's written on both sides and lets out a sigh. She leans back, resting against the wall with the letter in her lap.

_**Santana,**_

**_I cannot express how sorry I am. For everything. I understand that apologies can sometimes seem empty, just like promises can be, but I truly am so sorry._**

**_I never imagined my life to turn out this way. I'm sure that nobody ever really does. Since you've been gone, I have not only been getting sober but sadly realizing my short comings as a mother. I became preoccupied with my own problems and took it out on you and your brother._**

**_I need you to know that regardless of the issues I have with your father, you are my one right thing. You are the one thing in my life that is exactly what I expected and want and need. Maybe to other people you're not perfect, but that's because of me. But, you are Santana. You are perfect and don't let anyone ever tell you that you're not._**

**_You are smart and beautiful and funny and witty. You are kind too, even though the way I have made us live has made that difficult for others to see. But it's there inside of you._**

**_Even though I'm far away from you right now, I am comforted knowing that I know where you are and who you are with. Make sure you are listening to your Aunt Linda, she's a good girl. Tough as nails, but good at heart. Just like you._**

**_I know that you said you don't have friends there, but sweetie, you do. You have the kind of friends there that you never forget and never grow out of. The friendships we make as children last a lifetime and then some. So, please, let yourself be open and enjoy the wonderfulness that the world and the people in it have to offer. And I hope that you do._**

**_One of the things that has been getting me through this is remembering our summers visiting your aunt and uncle. The smiles you smiled and the sound of your laughter as you and little Brittany Pierce danced around the tire swing. You always seemed to be free while you were with her and I truly hope that is what you are doing now. Don't let my mistakes and bad choices hold you back or keep you down my darling._**

_**I love you. Always and forever my sweet Santana. **_

_**Love, Mom**_

When she's done reading the letter she stares blankly down at the salutation. The last time she'd seen her mother was months ago when she and her father dropped her off at Aunt Linda's doorstep. She wonders how many times her mother tried to write this letter. She tries to picture her mother, hunched over a piece of paper with a pen in her hand with a bunch of previous drafts crumpled up all over the kitchen table. She thinks of how desperate she was to get this one letter exactly right in the hopes of making up for the years of being absent or drunk or both.

But, no matter how many letters she could send Santana, it wasn't going to make up for the gap between them. Santana didn't have the typical mother in the years that she needed it most. All Karen Lopez provided for her daughter was a steady flow of alcohol for her to steal and a blind eye to turn whenever Santana came home at odd hours in the night or morning.

"Santana." Aunt Linda calls from the other side of the closed bedroom door and is followed by a knock. Santana looks up and quickly shoves the letter under her pillow just as the door knob turns and her door opens up a crack.

"Yeah?" Santana leans against the wall and crosses her legs at the ankle.

"I'm goin' into town to get some groceries for dinner." Aunt Linda tells her and leans comfortably against the doorframe. "I invited Brittany over for dinner." Santana stares back at her. "You're a lot nicer when she's around." Linda tosses over her shoulder as she turns and walks back down the hall.

Santana hears the front door open and shut and then a few minutes later the roar of Aunt Linda's pick-up pulls away. She stays in her spot on her bed, back up against the wall. The letter she had been reading remains stuffed under her pillow, as the saying goes 'out of sight out of mind'. But, it's not out of mind. She feels angry and betrayed. She'd been getting by just fine down here in Knox without the reminders of what she'd left behind. In fact, she'd almost forgotten that somewhere up in Boston she'd once had a life.

Almost.

Sure, from time to time, she thinks of her times out with Puck. The parties and the night rides. She even sometimes smiles to herself when she remembers some dumb witty retort that would pop out of her buddy's mouth that never made much sense to her. The moments alone she had with Aunt Linda's lap top, which was basically twice, allowed her to sneak onto her Facebook page to look back at the photos of a life that felt so foreign. It was odd to her in those times that she felt she hardly missed those nights that she vaguely remembered.

But, the letter hidden beneath her pillow is a reminder. It's a reminder of the life she'd had back in Boston and the person she was when she was there. She wonders if it is possible to be both the person she was and this other version of her that she is here in Texas. She looks over to her bedroom window, the one that faces Brittany's, and just stares across the fence. Life is less complicated down here than it is back in Boston. But, at the same time, it's even more complicated in Knox City.

It's different.

Waking up and knowing that someone loves you, that someone is _in love_ with you is strange. Santana feels as though she's finally opened her eyes for the first time ever. She sees things in ways she'd never thought she could. The sky, it's bluer. The smell of Texas is welcoming and lovely can instantly remind her of the day out by the Pierce farmhouse when she and Brittany were lying in the small field of flowers and tall grass.

But, just as much as she is overcome with a myriad of wonderful feelings, she can't escape the warning that this situation brings to them. This is still small town Texas. With all of the declarations of not caring about anyone else are great for speeches, but when put to reality it becomes a much more difficult journey. Because, is it really that easy to throw caution to the wind in a place like Knox?

It has been a constant fear, having Brittany fall victim to the unkindness that is in the world. It is a lot easier said than done and as she sits there on her bed with her back against her bedroom wall, she contemplates the consequences of their recent admissions to one another. Because, even if she damns the consequences like her aunt said, they are still very much there.

Over in the Pierce house, the Mayor is sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee and a few papers from work. She hears the front door open and shut followed by soft footsteps letting her know that it is Brittany who is home and not her husband.

"We never got to finish our conversation earlier." Mrs. Pierce starts when Brittany walks into the kitchen and tosses her duffel bag onto one of the kitchen table chairs. Brittany sighs and rolls her eyes, she was hoping her mother would at least start a new conversation not pick up where they left off this morning. "You know," She continues. "I've been hearing a lot of things around town."

"Oh?" Brittany pays her no mind and opens her bag pulling out her dirty garage clothes. "Anything interestin'?" Mrs. Pierce watches her daughter as piles up her dirty shirt and jumpsuit on the kitchen table.

"As head cheerleader you have an obligation to your squad." Mrs. Pierce starts and Brittany breathes out a groan. She shakes her head to herself and turns around to grab a banana from the counter by the refrigerator. "Its bein' compromised by the company you've been keepin'." Brittany looks at her mother, waiting for more words of disappointment to come spewing out of her mouth. She shakes her head again and turns back to the banana in her hand to unpeel it.

"If you have somethin' to say then say it. Stop dancin' around what you mean." Brittany says over her shoulder, trying hard not to show her mother that she is getting to her.

"Ever since the beginnin' of the school year you've been actin' like a little girl." Mrs. Pierce sighs in frustration. "You've lost sight of your priorities." Brittany chuckles as she tightens her grip on the fruit in her hand.

"And what _priorities_ are those?" She challenges and opens the refrigerator to distract herself. Mrs. Pierce finds herself growing impatient with the way her daughter so easily pushes aside the conversation.

"You've been ditchin' your friends to spend time with people that no longer matter." Annie points out and Brittany's eyebrows rise in surprise at how bluntly rude her mother can be sometimes. "Oh, _don't_ look at me that way, you know what I mean." Mrs. Pierce waves her hand in the air as though to clear any confusion to her words. Brittany slowly takes a seat right across from her mother at the kitchen table.

"Actually, I don't think I do." Brittany shakes her head.

"My opinion about Quinn Fabray has not changed. I don't recall givin' you permission to hang around her." Mrs. Pierce finally says straightforwardly. "And apparently when you're not with one bad influence," She points over her shoulder in the direction of the Lopez house. "You're with another." Brittany chokes on laughter and a bit of banana at her mother's statement.

"Mom, this town is made up of around ten people and Quinn is one of them." Brittany defends easily. "Avoiding Quinn is ridiculously difficult. Besides, we're friends. We've always been friends and we'll always be friends." Mrs. Pierce gives her daughter a look and all Brittany can do is put her focus on her snack and pretends that she's looking for her next good bite. "Same goes for Santana. Maybe that's somethin' you're just gonna have to start understanding."

"I can still have your father let him go." Mrs. Pierce threatens and Brittany looks up.

"Probably." Brittany shrugs and takes another bite. "But, you won't."

"You really wanna test me?" Mrs. Pierce counters, giving her daughter a pointed yet slightly shocked stare. "When did you get such an attitude on you?" Brittany rolls her eyes and huffs. She hadn't been prepared to get the third degree. "Ever since _that_ girl came into town you've been a completely different person."

"I'm the _same_ person I've always been." Brittany defends, finally dropping her banana to the table. She looks down at her phone when it vibrates and smiles to herself. "I'm not gonna be home for dinner." She announces, pushes herself up from her chair and grabs her plate.

Mrs. Pierce says something, but she mumbles it under her breath, so Brittany doesn't pay much attention to it and goes about tossing her snack into the garbage pail. On the way to her bedroom, Brittany reaches into the bathroom to grab a hair tie she'd left on the counter and uses it to pull her hair up into a ponytail.

After grabbing a few things from her room Brittany heads back out to the hall and walks right by her mother, who she left in the kitchen, and towards the front door. It's nice to only have to walk a few feet to get to her destination.

"Hey." Santana greets when she finds Brittany standing just on the other side of the screen door.

"Hey." Brittany replies with a small smile playing on her lips.

"Come in." Santana steps back and pushes the door open for her.

"It was real nice of your aunt to ask me over for dinner." She says as she walks into the Lopez house.

"Yeah, well," Santana lets the screen door snap back and close on its own. "Aunt Linda says she can only stand me when you're around." Brittany sighs out a faint giggle and nods. She goes to reach out for her hand but is dismissed as Santana quickly pulls it away.

"What's wrong?" She asks. Santana lets out a long winded sigh and turns to the kitchen to which Brittany slowly follows behind.

"Nothing." Santana waves her hand over her shoulder and stops in front of her Aunt's liquor cabinet.

Brittany can tell by the way Santana avoids eye contact, turns her back and the simple flick of her wrist that the 'nothing' she claims is a flat out lie. She moves further into the kitchen and watches how Santana's finger tips trace over the necks of the liquor bottles.

"Are you gonna drink?" Brittany questions with confusion because if there is in fact nothing wrong, then Santana wouldn't be questing to remedy nothingness with some momentary numbing liquid.

"Why not?" Santana shrugs and sends a forced smirk in Brittany's direction before turning her focus back to her mission of acquiring alcohol.

"'Cause it's only four thirty and it's your aunt's stash." Brittany points out which only makes Santana huff.

"It's five o'clock somewhere." Santana mumbles with another dismissive wave of her hand.

"Why?" Brittany wonders and Santana chuckles to herself as she grips her hand around a half a bottle of vodka.

"I don't know the reason. Time zones and whatever." She explains and twists the cap of the bottle. She spins around, closing the cabinet door behind her and leans against the counter top.

"I meant the alcohol." Brittany replies. Santana stares back at her for a good long minute before she sighs and sets the bottle down onto the counter and crosses her arms over her chest. Her lips twist and her eyes scan down to the tile floor of her aunt's kitchen. "So, you're just gonna get drunk? What are you gonna do when your aunt gets back and she realizes you're wasted?"

"I don't need a speech. You're not my mother." Santana bites back. Brittany's eyebrows rise in surprise at the tone and she looks back at the bottle.

"You're also the one who's been sayin' that you don't want to wind up _like_ your mother." Brittany reminds her. "I'm not sayin' you are by sneakin' a drink or two from your aunt's liquor cabinet. But," She shrugs. "I mean, people who drink at four thirty either had a hard day at work, are in college or they are tryin' not to feel somethin'." Santana lets out a strangled laugh and rolls her eyes. She nods a bit, but it's more to herself than at what Brittany has just said. "So…"

"_Fine_!" Santana uncrosses her arms and holds her hands up. "I'll put it back." She turns to grab the bottle, screws the top on and opens the cabinet door back up. "I'll put it back and Aunt Lee will be none the wiser."

"I didn't mean… look, everythin' was…" Brittany stammers, not sure what to say now that the mood is most definitely altered. Santana stands with her back to Brittany, hands on the counter and cabinet door still open. "I'm just tryin' to figure out…" The cabinet door slams shut and Santana spins around.

"How I _feel_?" Santana challenges. "Well, I feel like I'm nothin'. I feel like everythin' I touch turns to shit and anythin' I care about doesn't care about me back." She spits out angrily. Her eyes move from Brittany to a corner of the kitchen ceiling when she feels tears forming. Brittany shifts in her spot a few feet away and watches on as Santana battles the tears in her eyes from falling. "I'm sorry it's just…" She looks down at the floor.

"Santana, _I_ care about you." Brittany tells her softly making Santana breath out a small sort of laugh. She shakes her head and finally lets her gaze fall onto Brittany who is staring right back at her.

"But," Santana starts, letting her focus falter back down to the ground. "What happens when you stop?" She asks so innocently and scared that Brittany is rendered almost speechless. Santana sighs out a disbelieving laugh when Brittany doesn't respond right away. "What am I supposed to do then, huh?"

"That won't happen." Brittany finally answers which garners a huge eye roll from Santana.

"You're so sure!" Santana yells and it startles Brittany so much that she stumbles back into the kitchen table. "It drives me absolutely crazy!" She continues in a loud tone and quickly runs her fingers through her hair as a distraction from stress. "The world isn't black and white, Brittany. There's all this, this gray and uncertainty."

"There's color too." Brittany chimes in, cutting Santana off before she can continue on in her outburst. "And surprises." She adds and takes a step closer to a now silenced Santana. "I honestly never thought I'd ever see you again. But, I have. You're here and I can't…" She looks away for a moment to process her thoughts. "You're so desperate to show me a side of you that will make me turn and run away. You want me to not want you, but it doesn't matter what it is that you do or say 'cause I'm not goin' anywhere." She reaches out once again to grab Santana's hand and this time is successful. "I know I've said this before, but you just don't seem to get it. So, I'll keep tellin' you until you finally believe me." She steps a little more closer until they are face to face. "But, first, you've gotta get over yourself and trust the both of us."

"And how am I supposed to do that?"

"Ask yourself this," Brittany shrugs and reaches up to tuck some hair behind Santana's ear. "Why haven't _you_ walked away from this yet?" She searches Santana's eyes that struggle to avoid hers. Brittany can tell there are so many things that Santana wants to say, so many things that she needs to say, but is having a difficult time finding the words.

"I've already let you in and…" Santana sniffles and quickly wipes the back of her hand against her cheek. "What am I gonna do when you don't want me anymore?"

"Not possible." Brittany assures her in a gentle whisper. "I want you. I've always wanted you." She admits quietly and Santana finally looks back up at her. "And… I mean, it feels like I will always want you." She smiles when she finally sees a hint of relief behind those dark brown eyes.

Santana's mouth opens and closes, her eyes flickering back and forth between those beautiful blues staring into her. Her feet shuffle against the old wood floor in the hallway and she swallows the lump of words and fears and everything else.

"This is it." Santana whispers to herself between the sniffling and the wiping of tears. Brittany's stare turns into a curious one.

"This is what?"

"The part where I…" Her voice remains soft and nervous.

"I'm back!" Aunt Linda calls out as she throws the front door open. The girls jump away from each other at the sound of the booming voice followed by the slamming of the screen door behind it.

Santana moves herself away from the liquor cabinet and leans her hands on one of the chairs at the kitchen table. Brittany turns around to face the opening of the kitchen just in time to find Linda with two bags in each hand.

"Ahh, Brittany." Aunt Linda beams over at her and sets the bags down onto the table. "I see you've accepted the invitation to join us for dinner." She taps her niece on the arm and motions towards the bags. Brittany nods and sends a quick glance over to Santana who has moved to empty the contents of the grocery bags.

"Yes." Brittany finally finds her voice. "Thank you so much for the invite. You know how much I love your cookin'." She grins.

"Ya know, Santana, you don't know this," Linda moves about the kitchen. "But, Brittany was my bff while you were away." She comments and Santana quirks an eyebrow and looks over at the two of them.

"It's true." Brittany shrugs and lets out a giggle. "We played a lot of board games." She explains and crinkles her nose.

"Sound like loads of fun." Santana dryly comments. She's sort of distracted and a little thankful for her aunt's intrusion on what would have been an emotionally naked moment.

For the most part their dinner conversation is focused on how the school year is going for Brittany and her thoughts on the re-vamping of the drive-in. Santana is sort of comforted by her aunt and Brittany yapping away because she has way too many things going on her mind to even pretend to be listening. As dinner finally comes to a close the girls help Aunt Linda clear the table and clean the dishes.

When they are done with everything Aunt Linda excuses herself telling them that she is going out to meet some girlfriends from work. She tells them to stay out of trouble and that Brittany is in charge. The girls sit on the couch, both sort of looking out the bay window watching as Aunt Linda pulls out of the driveway and vanishes west on the South Service Road.

"So, did you really spend a lot of time here like you say?" Santana wonders after a few moments of quiet when she turns the television on. Brittany clears her throat and shifts in her seat beside Santana.

"Uh, yeah." She nods and watches as Santana plays with the remote control in her hands. "It was when my dad started the dealership and my mom was working her way up the Knox City Council ladder." She explains with some hand movements. "They were, like, _never _home." She shrugs as if it is all in the past, but, Santana can tell that it is something that is still very much relevant. "Ya know, people assume that every girl has a good relationship with her mother. Just like a lot of people figure boys and their dads bond over a catch." Brittany shrugs. "Some things in life are simple and some things are the opposite. It _should_ be easy for me to go home and tell my mom about everything and anything; only it's not like that at all. She's not like other moms. Sometimes it feels like I don't even have a mom." She looks down at the way her feet pull up onto the couch.

"Me too." Santana mumbles.

"It's weird how some people can step into the special roles of your life, even if those roles are filled for the most part." Brittany muses, her voice soft and Santana quietly listens. "There are a lot of moments in my life that I wish I could have shared with my mother. Or… at least the kind of mother I wish I had. Instead… I make do with what I got." She explains.

"You don't have to lecture me on the letdown of parental figures. I pretty much wrote the book."

"_You don't know_." Brittany interrupts, her voice rises and it makes the smirk on Santana's face fade. "Everyone thinks being the mayor's daughter or even the daughter of Annie Pierce _means_ something." She shakes her head, keeping her focus on the muted television. "No one knows that I dread goin' home sometimes 'cause all my mother does is make me feel like a disappointment. I don't do _this_ right and I don't do _that_ right and it makes me think that maybe I am as dumb as the rest of the town thinks I am. '_No school will want a cheerleader who cares more about the cars the boys drive than the boys drivin' 'em_'." She adds the last part in a voice that imitates her mother's.

Santana studies Brittany's face. It's different than it usually looks. It's sad. Her eyes are darker and she can tell that Brittany is not exactly just in this moment, but experiencing two moments in one. She wants to say something, yet, not at all sure what to say. Before she can even think of a word, let alone a full sentence, Brittany continues.

"I was fourteen the first time I had sex." Brittany admits when the silence becomes a bit too much for her. Santana tries not to flinch or react in any specific way, she just continues to look at her and shakes her head as she absorbs this new information. Brittany continues to stare off into the television set, playing with the frayed edges of the pillow in her lap. "I was on the varsity cheerleadin' squad, both me and Quinn, which is a big deal for any Knox City High cheerleader." She continues while Santana stays still and quiet. "We'd been goin' out to parties with the squad and I just..." She nervously chuckles and shakes her head as she sets her hands flatly against the pillow. "My first time was in a bathroom on a counter next to a sink at a party. The guy never told anyone, he was actually nice. But, I felt... I felt like, as a 'popular girl', a Knox City cheerleader, my job was supposed to have sex with any guy. So," She side eyes where Santana is sitting beside her, but can't find it in her to actually make eye contact. "I did. I would just tell my mom that I was sleepin' at Quinn's or one of the other girl's houses whenever I picked a guy and she barely cared on account of me bein' a varsity girl. She loved that I was getting' popular so..."

Brittany takes a breath and tightens her ponytail. Santana watches the way she slowly brings her hands back down to her thighs and wipes her palms against her bare skin. She wonders if Brittany is nervous right now; nervous about telling Santana these things or even nervous at all. Maybe she's just wiping her hands because it's something to do.

"On one hand, I had my mom urgin' me to go out and make new friends and askin' me about boys and if I had a crush." Brittany continues, lost in the current conversation and in her memories. "It was so confusin'… 'cause I wanted her to be proud of me and talk to me and…" She sucks in her bottom lip, finally tears her eyes from the screen and looks over at Santana. "I never got 'the talk' from my mother. Miss Linda was the only adult who would talk to me about sex. I needed someone to explain the things I wasn't sure about. So your aunt did just that." Brittany says bluntly. "Right here on this couch. I had just gotten out of practice and I just felt lost and no one was home in my house. I didn't know what to do. So, I came over here 'cause I remembered in the fifth grade we went to this seminar about becomin' a women and I just had so many questions. I'm sure Miss Linda was caught off guard, I mean, there she was talkin' to the kid next door about sex."

"Aunt Linda is pretty cool like that though. She's a good listener." Santana comments, finally finding her voice and Brittany nods in agreement.

"I get that from the outside my life looks pretty comfortable. I guess it is." Brittany looks back down at her hands. "I have both parents, I have friends, I have…" Her eyes flicker up to Santana for a moment. "I'm good at adaptin' to situations. I'm good at gettin' along with basically everyone I meet. I try to look at the glass as completely full. But, then I get home and I'm tired. Sure, there's a lot worse things out there in the world, but who's to say which worse is worse?"

"I never thought about it that way." Santana thinks out loud. Brittany's lips twist and she watches as Santana takes in everything she's just told her. "I'm sorry Britt, but, why are you tellin' me all this?" She asks out of curiosity. Brittany sucks in her lips and nods, knowing that this question was going to come up.

"You've told me a lot about things about your life in Boston." Brittany says and Santana nods. "Most of it was real personal and… I want you to know everythin' about me." She shrugs and offers a small smile along with her words. "I told you that your past is important to me, 'cause it is. I think everyone's past is sort of important. I think it's fair that you know mine too. And then maybe you can see that you and I are a lot more alike than you realize." Santana looks at Brittany who is looking right back at her. She's confused. She's a little overwhelmed and slightly angry.

"You think that we're similar 'cause… 'cause you got fucked at some high school party?" Santana shakes her head and tears her eyes from Brittany's. She pushes her hands into the cushion of the sofa and moves a few inches from Brittany. She can see out of the corner of her eye the way Brittany's shoulders slump a bit and how she leans in the space she just created.

"_What_? _No_. I…" Brittany sighs and rubs her temple with her fingertips. "That's not…" Brittany, desperate to defend herself, is at a loss for words and she can see as the seconds go by that the silence and stuttering is not helping.

"Who was it?" Santana asks, the irritation clear in her voice. "Was it Finn?" She jerks her head in Brittany's direction, her eyes boring into blues. "Is he on your list?"

"No." Brittany answers almost instantly but all Santana does is huff and look away again. "Santana." She says softly and tries to reach her hand out but she is denied. "Why would it matter anyway?"

"Everyone in this stupid town acts like you and Finn Hudson are the fuckin' Cinderella and Prince Charming of Knox." Santana spits out as she crosses her arms over her chest. "Maybe they're right. Maybe…" She sighs in frustration. This turn of events is throwing Brittany off and she isn't exactly sure where this conversation is headed.

"Do _you_ want me to be with Finn?" Brittany asks incredulously. Santana glares at her and clenches her jaw as she contemplates this scenario. Her eyes roll at the thought and at how she is digging herself into a hole for the most immature of reasons.

"I'm a jealous person." She admits, forcing the words through gritted teeth.

"We're all jealous by nature." Brittany points out matter of factly and shrugs as though it's no big deal.

"Yeah, but… I'll hate anyone and everyone else who makes you smile or laugh or worse, both." Santana explains like a child whining and Brittany smirks. "I guess the thought of him especially is disturbing on so many levels."

"And why's that?" Brittany asks, wondering if perhaps they are on their way back to the part of the conversation that Aunt Linda interrupted earlier.

Santana looks back away from the television which she had only been using as something to look at other than Brittany and finally looks at her. Her lips move because she wants to say something, anything really. Something she almost said earlier but couldn't. Something she thinks she may never be able to say out loud.

"Brittany." Santana breathes out and Brittany eagerly waits for the rest. "I… I think you should go." They both look away from one another again, neither expecting that to be said. "I…"

"Yeah, sure." Brittany awkwardly gets up from the couch and takes a few steps away. "You know," She jams her hands into the back pockets of her shorts and turns around. "I don't really get what happened between this morning and right now. Last night, you said things and… I mean…"

"Britt, I can't right now." Santana sighs with a groan and palms her face in frustration.

"When can you?" Brittany asks without pause. Santana looks down at her lap and intertwines her own fingers.

"Maybe never." She replies in a low voice. Brittany waits there, in the middle of Linda Lopez's living room, for something else. Anything really. But, Santana doesn't say a word and with that silence Brittany turns and leaves.

* * *

><p>It's been hours since Brittany left and her aunt is still out with friends. Santana has been sitting in front of the television, still on mute, staring and thinking. Drinking too. She's been drinking and wondering why she's been such a bitch all day to Brittany for absolutely no reason. Only, there is a reason and it is hiding under her pillow in her room. The letter from her mother has been echoing in her mind since the first, third and fifth time she read it. She goes into her room, bottle of vodka in hand, grabs the letter and sits at her desk. It started raining about an hour ago and she feels like Mother Nature is trying to tell her something.<p>

The rain cascades over the window pane, creating lines of waves and leaving droplets in its wake. It doesn't matter though, she can see through it, the rain that is, and if possible, it only makes her see clearer. Her chest heaves as her breath hitches in her throat, her mind unaware of her legs moving long strides towards the window. She swallows, roughly, and her lips part as she lifts the bottle to her mouth.

Across the way is a scene she has seen millions of times before, but, now she _sees_. Her brow lightly furrows, her eyes flicker from the window as her mind finally catches up with the rest of her body. The way her heart is pounding, the shaking in her hands and the tiny quiver of her chin as realization crashes over her, like the waves of water against the window.

Without another thought, her hands are lifting up the window, coming down to the sill and she's hopping out onto the grass that is sopping wet. The rain pours down over her body, like it's washing out everything that's been in her way until now. Her hand comes up to wipe the water from her eyes, only to realize it's not just rain blurring her vision, but this does nothing to stop her.

She barely feels the pinch of pain in her feet when she makes her way over the four foot high, chain linked fence. But once her bare feet reach the cool, moist grass of the Pierce's side yard, she shivers. Her body moves of its own accord, and soon enough, she's standing in front of Brittany's bedroom window. She raises her arms, letting her hands push up and against the glass to open it.

"What the…?" Brittany is startled, her voice and look of surprise gives her away. "Santana?" She breathes out, only able to stand there with a questioning expression and her hand over her chest as she watches the dark haired girl climb through her window.

She doesn't comment on how Santana is making a tiny puddle, from her dripping wet clothes onto her floor, or that she is letting the rain in. She just stands there, staring on as Santana stands in the middle of her room dripping wet, looking back at her. Her hand comes to her ponytail, tugs at the tie holding it up, and lets her soaked, dark locks free. Soon, she reaches for the bottom of her shirt and lifts it up, peeling it from her body and then shimmies herself from her shorts.

"What are…?" Brittany whispers, but she doesn't finish, too mesmerized and silenced with confusion laced with concern.

Santana's eyes flicker to the side and Brittany sees something different in them. Santana shivers, but before she can bring her own hands around her midsection to comfort herself, she steps forward. She keeps moving and doesn't stop until she gets to Brittany.

"I…" Santana tries, only, her voice won't work. Brittany does her best to read her, searching Santana's face for answers. "I need…" Her head shakes and finally she meets Brittany's eyes.

So, instead of words, she moves. Her hands grab at the bottom of Brittany's tank top, which is a little damp from sweat. Brittany allows it to be lifted over her head and discarded somewhere by their feet. One more step forward and Santana's body is pushing against Brittany's, her hand finds soft skin with the pads of her fingers. She trails them down to her forearm, wrist and palm until she laces her fingers with Brittany's.

"Santana, my parents are home." Brittany whispers, wondering if her friend can see how fast and hard her heart is beating against her chest.

"I just…" Santana dips her head, looking at Brittany through her dark, thick eyelashes. "I just want you to hold me." She admits in a tone of voice that Brittany vaguely remembers, and it makes her breathe out a soft smile.

"Yeah." She nods, lifting her free arm up and around Santana's back, tugging their clasped hands closer to their bodies.

"I need you." Santana says quietly, and her voice shakes along with her body that continues to shiver.

They stand there in the middle of Brittany's room for a few minutes, a puddle of water setting at their feet. Brittany tucks her chin into the crook of Santana's neck and gently presses her lips close to her jaw. In the softest of voices Brittany begs her to tell her what happened. But rather than hash out her issues with a good conversation Santana moves her head so that she can lean up and press her lips to Brittany's.

At first Brittany is taken back by the turn of events. One second Santana is on the verge of tears begging to be held and then she is kissing her. Blue eyes search in confusion for answers in dark browns and suddenly Santana's lips are on hers again. Brittany's eyes close and she gives into the kissing. It's deeper than the initial kiss and this time she can taste something on Santana's tongue. She pulls back, holding Santana a few inches away by her shoulders.

"You're drunk." Brittany realizes. Santana ignores her and moves in to kiss her and her hands roam over Brittany's naked skin. "Santana." She says firmly but maintains a whisper as she jerks her head back. "Talk to me." She begs.

"I don't want to." Santana says, leaning her body back into Brittany's and grabs her face with her hands. Brittany grabs at her wrists to still her. "Come on Britt, ugh, can you just fuck me." She groans as she unsuccessfully tries to pull her wrists free from Brittany's grip. "You can slap me around if you want." She drunkenly chuckles and lifts her hands up that are still being restricted. "Looks like you like it rough." Her laughter fades when Brittany finally lets her go and moves from between the door and Santana. "I was just kidding. Geez." She reaches out again and plays with Brittany's fingers as gently as any drunk person can. "I know you like it soft and slow." She says in a softer yet mocking tone.

"What's going on? Why are you actin' like this?"

Brittany pulls her hand away and Santana pouts. She slowly makes her way over to Brittany's bed and flops down, crossing her arms over her chest. She looks down at the floor and Brittany watches the wave of emotions cross over her face. In an instant she is a sad little girl with tears in her eyes.

The past five minutes seem to erase from time completely as Santana breaks down. Tears trickle down her face one, two, and three at a time. They are unstoppable and Santana is inconsolable. It only takes the first tear to slide down her cheek for Brittany to rush over to her side and wrap her up in her arms. She coos her and kisses her temple and rocks her back and forth.

Santana eventually cries herself to sleep in Brittany's arms. For an hour or so, Brittany lays there, holding Santana tight and watches her sleep. She sees the way worry and sadness seem to torture Santana even in sleep. It hurts her heart to see the girl, the person she has fallen in love with be so broken. Thought and worry wears her down and soon enough Brittany is following Santana into dreamland.

In the morning Brittany wakes, weary and still sad with empty arms. She looks around and finds any clues that Santana had been beside her the night before are completely washed away. As if it never happened. She pushes herself up from her bed and looks out her bedroom window across the way to Santana's.

For the first time in years, Santana's bedroom window curtains are closed leaving Brittany zero access. Her eyes fall to her own window sill and she wonders if those shut curtains hold more meaning than merely being closed. As much as she tries to connect, Santana keeps finding ways to pull away.

Being Sunday, she decides she better get ready for church and leave last night's events here in her room. Maybe the new day will bring a brighter Santana and they can hash everything out without the dilution of alcohol and tears and desperate attempts to forget. But when she and her parents get to church she is disappointed to hear from Miss Linda that Santana has stayed home.

"She's a bit under the weather." Miss Linda says. It's in her tone though, the way the lie falls over her lips.

Brittany is the only one who picks up on it though. Others claim there's a bug going around, but people always say that when someone falls ill. She wonders if Miss Linda found Santana hung over this morning or worse, still drunk from the night before. Maybe she even found the empty or half empty bottle that Santana took comfort in. Or maybe her aunt knows more than Brittany does. Maybe she knows the reason Santana drank herself into a crying stupor.

It isn't until Monday when Brittany goes to pick Santana up for school does she grow worried. Linda's truck is gone and there's no Santana in sight. She even used her spare key to go inside and check. No Santana. The house is completely empty. Her worried texts and calls go unanswered and ignored. When she gets to school she catches Santana at her locker, but is avoided and brushed off at every attempt at an interaction.

By Wednesday, she almost gives up completely. Like the past two days she drives up into the Lopez driveway only this time she is surprised to find Santana sitting on the porch, waiting for her. It's uncomfortably quiet when she slips into the passenger seat and even worse on the way to school. At a red light Brittany looks over at Santana who is looking straight ahead. She wants to say things. She wants to know and ask and she wants to comfort but she can't find anything to say because she is still sort of mad. She's mad for reasons that don't even make any sense.

"I'm not ready." Santana tells her. Obviously she can feel eyes on her even though she doesn't show it. She keeps her own stare on the road ahead.

Brittany nods, not quite sure what it is that Santana is not ready for. But, she figures, when Santana is ready she will know too. So, when the light turns green they continue to ride in silence. The school day goes on just as any day has only it's quieter. Brittany finds it hard to concentrate. Trying to figure out someone as stubborn as Santana is nearly exhausting.

Unfortunately for her, Coach Sue picks up on her distracted mind and decides to expose her weakness at practice. She's used to it though, for the most part. And as her coach points out her flaws to the rest of her squad she takes it in silence. As soon as practice lets out Brittany goes to the one place that always helps her take her mind off of things; Pierce Parts and Tires.

After her weekly meeting with Miss Pillsbury, Santana finds herself walking aimlessly down the street. She's supposed to be going to work, but she finds the motivation hard to gather. She stops walking when she's right around the block from Holly's Daze and calls up Holly. In a roundabout way she asks Holly for the night off. Thankfully Holly is the best boss ever and gives it to her without any questions.

It's nearly dinner time when she gets home. She walked so it took a little while longer than if she had someone get her immediately after she called out of work. But, she figured that the fresh air would do her good. The past couple of days she has been sort of avoiding everything.

After that night at Brittany's she stumbled into her room, still drunk, and found that her aunt had discovered the letter from her mother. Aunt Linda told her that this behavior was clearly unacceptable, however, under the circumstances she would give her niece a free pass. They talked for a little while, well, mostly Aunt Linda talked and Santana at least listened. Other than that little talk though, Santana hasn't spoken much to anyone or in general.

Her mind these past few days had drifted from her feelings from her mother's letter and more on her feelings for Brittany. She is ashamed at the way she acted and especially with the way she spoke to Brittany. She would completely understand if Brittany actually wanted nothing more to do with her. Even though the girl next door claimed nothing could make her feelings change, Santana knew that there was always a line and only so much that someone would be willing to take. She just hoped that she hadn't pushed her luck.

"How do you tell someone you love them?" Santana asks her aunt as she is washing dishes in the sink after dinner. Aunt Linda stops what she is doing and looks up quickly. It's the first words Santana has spoken in a few hours other than 'I don't have work' when she got home. Santana is continuing to wash the dishes, almost as if she hadn't said a word let alone ask what she just asked.

"You say it." Aunt Linda tells her flat out before going back to fixing the table cloth on the table.

"What if…" Santana begins again after a few long seconds of silence. "What if they gave you this big speech about why you are the greatest thing in their life? That… just being near them, you make everything make sense. And that, the scary isn't as scary when you're holding their hand." She pauses in her dish washing motions and looks over her shoulder in the direction of Aunt Linda. "How do you respond to that? How do you top that?" Her eyes finally lift up and meet Aunt Linda's gaze. Aunt Linda's head tilts to the side and she stands up straight. Her hand comes up to rest on her hip and she tucks some stray hair behind her ear as she lets out a sigh.

"Love isn't about who says it first or always. It's not about where you say it or how you say it. The words aren't scary, it's what they stand for. When you say them you're not telling this person you're nothing without them. You're telling them that you're everything with them." Aunt Linda explains and for about a minute they stand there, in the kitchen, staring at each other. Linda watches as her words of wisdom sink into her niece and the way she nods as she accepts them for whatever they are.

"Okay." Santana shrugs and turns back to the sink and starts up washing another dish. Linda keeps her eyes on Santana for a couple of more seconds.

"Hey Santana." Aunt Linda calls out and Santana regards her with a hum and a quick look over her shoulder to show she is listening. "Falling in love with someone, that's the easy part." She starts and she can instantly see Santana's hands slow down until they completely stop. "What complicates things is our fear of allowing them to love us back. For them to see us at our worst and _not_ leave. For them to see us at our very best and not be turned off by arrogance. For them to see us as we are. That's the hardest part of love. It's about being vulnerable and that's frightening." She sees Santana's head bob up and down in understanding and then eventually she's back to rinsing off the dish in her hand.

"Umm," She hums and shuts the faucet off before turning around. "You think I can borrow the truck for, like, an hour?"

Brittany walks out from the employee bathroom with her cheer duffle bag in her hand. The soft scent of soap wafts off of her arms and hands as she walks towards one of the bench tables to set her bag down. The garage is empty and quiet, the other guys had left well over an hour ago. She enjoys the time to herself. Working on cars and listening to music is a form of clarity that sometimes dancing just can't bring to her.

As she zips up her bag, ready to throw it on her shoulder and turn around to call it a day, a noise comes through the speakers of the garage. Her brow furrows at the static fuzz that slightly echoes against the cement walls of the garage. She stills her movements at what sounds like a radio dial being turned until finally, the beginning pings of a song enters her ears.

Letting go of her bag, she turns around and sees the office light on with Santana standing on the other side of the glass door. They stare at one another for a few seconds, the radio playing something soft and slow in the background.

Santana looks down at her hands that are fidgeting in front of her body and steps closer to the glass door. Brittany follows suit, taking tentative steps towards the door. When there is literally just the thin pane of glass between them, their eyes finally meet.

Brittany reaches to grab the handle of the door to yank it open, but is stopped when Santana's right hand comes up to her eye level. She presses her palm to the glass and Brittany takes notice of the writing on her hand.

'I'm sorry'

Brittany smiles softly as her eyes scan over the writing on the other girl's soft skin. She swallows hard as she shifts her eyes to meet Santana's and lightly shrugs a shoulder. Santana raises her other hand, a small smirk on her face.

'dance?' is written on the other hand and Brittany's smile grows as she pulls the door open but it's already being pushed. Their hands reach out to one another until their bodies are as close as can possibly be with clothes still on.

They sway side to side, Santana's chin resting comfortably at Brittany's chest and her arms around her waist. It's quiet between them for a little while and they enjoy the music and the way their bodies just meld together in a perfect dance. After a few steps, Santana clears her throat and explains everything to Brittany. She tells her about the letter that she got from her mom and what it said. More importantly, she tells her how it made her feel.

Brittany listens on silently, nodding and humming at the right moments. She can't help but love the feel of the vibrations against her body as Santana speaks into her skin, revealing so much to her. She feels special and needed and wanted and so many other great feelings that probably have words but she can't think of them.

"I know I keep pushing you away." Santana admits, her head now resting on Brittany's shoulder. "I don't know why." She tugs on a piece of string from Brittany's shirt. "I'm a fuck up and a loser and you deserve someone so much better than me." She insists, almost pleading with Brittany to agree and finally give up on her. When Brittany doesn't respond, she sighs. "I'm sorry." She mumbles and a tiny sob comes out. "I didn't expect to get this upset over a stupid fucking letter. Isn't it ridiculous?" She spits out in a whisper.

"I don't think it's ridiculous at all." Brittany says in a quiet voice, finally pulling her head back to look down at Santana, coaxing her to look up. She places her hand at the small of Santana's back, letting her thumb rub tiny circles there.

"Like, does she just expect me to forgive her so easily?" Santana asks, sounding pained at the thought of what her mother even wants from her after being absent for so long. Brittany bites her bottom lip, her eyes flicker to the side for a moment.

"Can I say something?" Brittany wonders, not sure if this is one of those moments when she is supposed to remain quiet and nod a bunch of times until Santana cries herself into silence. Santana sniffles, looks up at her and nods. "You're not a fuck up. Maybe you've made some bad choices, maybe you've done some things that are… less than ideal for the rest of the world." They both chuckle sadly. "But, you're no fuck up. I know you think that you don't deserve certain things in life, I think we all feel like that sometimes. But, that's just what growing up is about and honestly, I don't think that ever stops. I do know one thing." Brittany's voice is so soft and soothing and Santana sniffles when Brittany rests her chin in the crook of her neck and holds her just a little bit tighter. "I love you. Even the parts that make you think you're no good for me. _Especially_ the parts that think that 'cause it just gives me more of a reason to show you you're wrong."

"And you know how much I hate being wrong."

"Exactly. But, you're so cute and pouty." Brittany chuckles and presses a kiss to Santana's cheek.

"Hey, Britt?"

"Mhmmm, yeah?" Her voice is scratchy and dry and her eyes are closed.

"I... I think you're beautiful."

Brittany pulls her head back to look into Santana's eyes. They are wide and glistening. She can see that the words Santana _can_ say mean so much more than what they sound like. Her eyes scan over her features until they land on those pouty lips that always taste delicious. She leans forward to press a soft, sweet and quick kiss to that wonderful mouth. When she opens her eyes she is relieved to find a smile beaming up at her.

* * *

><p>It is pretty easy for Santana to get back into the swing of a regular week of school after that night in the garage. For a day or two she felt very immature and slightly naïve to believe that a simple apology could make everything better especially since it's what her mother had tried to do with her. It was the very reason she had blown up and fell off the deep end.<p>

But, she is thankful to have someone like Brittany in her life because it makes her saying 'I'm sorry' as simple as it sounds. She apologizes and almost all is forgiven. In a way it gives her a small glimmer of hope to learn to forgive as easy as Brittany can. She figures that when someone is truly and deeply sorry then forgiveness is a bit simpler.

"Do you believe in soul mates?" Kurt asks the table as he sits down.

"I don't know." Quinn sighs as she grabs her water bottle.

"Maybe." Tina offers with a slight shrug.

"I do." Brittany answers almost instantly and the rest of the table turn to look curiously in her direction.

"But, there're so many people in the world." Tina interjects and everyone seems to agree with this statement. Brittany just smiles sweetly as she pulls her lunch from her backpack, not at all interested in everyone else's negativity.

"But, there're only so many people that we meet." Brittany answers in that all knowing tone and Quinn smirks, because she knows something brilliant is about to be said.

"Okay." Kurt drawls out, not at all settling for that as a good enough answer and Brittany picks up on this.

"I think that everythin' happens for a reason." She starts. "We're meant to make the choices we make and we're meant to make the mistakes we make." She quickly glances over at Santana who is listening intently. "It's what brings us to where we're supposed to be. We all have a destination to get to, wherever it may be. But, it's the journey that really matters the most anyway. I think that if everyone just stopped thinkin' about where they'll end up they'd find what they're lookin' for." Brittany says with a shrug and takes a quick sip of her drink.

"And what's that?" Quinn asks, curiosity peeking out.

"Everythin'." Brittany tells her with a smile.

"That's pretty vague." Quinn replies and Brittany chuckles.

"I'm sittin' at a table full of pessimists so of course any answer I give isn't gonna be good enough." Brittany points out and everyone basically quiets in surprise. "I believe in soul mates 'cause I think that the person you're meant to be with is someone you've already met in one way or another. Maybe literally or maybe they're just an idea. If they're an idea then you'll know when you eventually meet them that they're who you've been lookin' for all along. And if you know them already, well, then that's just a bonus. The hard part then is just showin' them that not only are they your soul mate, but that you're theirs too. 'Cause sometimes not everyone knows they are lookin' for anythin'."

"Okay, okay." Tina chimes in with a wave of her hand. "What happens if you meet your so-called 'soul mate' and it doesn't work out?"

"Yeah." Kurt nods. "What if the forces pull you apart, like an iceberg?" He asks and Quinn rolls her eyes.

"I think we're talkin' 'bout real life here, Kurt."

"Umm, and I'm talkin' about things that may happen. Cinematic romance is a good guide for the do's and don'ts of any relationship."

"While I'm certain Kurt isn't insinuating that any of us are gonna be boardin' the Titanic anytime soon, he does have a point. I mean, what about Meredith and Derek in Grey's Anatomy? The fates have tested them at least twice every season."

"Word." Kurt agrees and sends a pointed look over at his cousin.

"And look at One Day. Anne Hathaway and that British guy wound up realizin' they were meant to be even though life constantly threw them into situations that would keep them apart." Tina adds.

"If you're gonna compare life to the movies, how 'bout somethin' more plausible?" Quinn interrupts and everyone looks at her. "Like, The Notebook."

"I love that movie." Tina sighs, romance sparkling in her eyes.

"They did end up together." Kurt agrees. "Even if she did forget who he was."

"Which one was The Notebook?" Mike asks.

"The movie with Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams." Kurt replies and gets a blank stare from Mike.

"Boy meets girl and falls in love. Boy gets girl to fall in love with him. Boy loses girl thanks to girl's over bearin' mother who has different expectations for her daughter." Quinn explains. "It's actually a really sad movie."

"I don't think I saw that one."

"Yes you did." Tina reminds him and he shrugs. "And yes it was sad but beautifully sad and devastatingly romantic. A true story of soul mates meant to be." She grins and looks to Brittany. "You may be right after all."

"It was just a movie." Brittany forces out a sighed laugh.

"Well, I could relate to that one the most." Quinn says and side eyes Brittany. "It was one of the most honest movies I've seen about love. We all have our own personal hopes and dreams. But, sometimes we fall into other people's expectations of us and who we're supposed to be."

"I can relate to that one." Kurt raises his hand.

"Alright enough of this mushy crap. I feel like I'm drownin' in estrogen." Mike interrupts with a dramatic eye roll. "Tina and I were hopin' to get a group to April's. Anyone in?" He raises his eyebrows and scans the table, a big smile on his face. The girls start laughing and Kurt goes on about how he met some guy the last time he was there.

"Yeah, enough with the mushy crap I just wanna dance." Quinn mocks and gets a few more chuckles out of the other ladies at the table.

"I am absolutely down for a trip to April's. The last time we all went there together a very dapper boy asked me to dance." Kurt tells everyone, a huge smile on his face. "He's so sweet and charming and…"

"The guy with the eyebrows?" Santana asks when Kurt continues to rant. Everyone's laughter dies down a bit and they smirk at her and then Kurt.

"He was adorable." Kurt defends.

"He was the poster boy for a gel-er-vention." Santana pokes fun though she keeps serious for affect.

"Did you get his number?" Brittany asks.

"Oh, you bet he did." Quinn jumps in and bumps her shoulder into her cousins.

"Ooh, what's his name?" Tina wonders suddenly intrigued since there is actually depth to Kurt's story. Kurt looks around the table to see if this is some ploy to poke fun or if everyone really wants the details.

"His name is Blaine and he's in a band." Kurt shares in a coy manner and the girls fawn over him as he tells them all about the night that he met Blaine Anderson.

As the rest of the table falls silent to hear every detail, Santana watches Brittany. She smiles at the way the blonde leans in for the parts of the story that Kurt whispers about and the parts she looks around to see everyone else's reaction. It's hard for her not to smile from ear to ear when she catches Brittany's eyes and they have a moment of their own.

After school Santana walks Brittany to the cheerleader's locker room like she usually does on days she doesn't have work and or her meeting with Miss Pillsbury. The hallways are getting less and less crowded as the students head out for the day or making their way to their own after school activity.

"So, do you wanna go to April's?" Brittany asks, her fingertips grazing Santana's palm which instantly makes the both of them smile.

"I think I can fit that into my schedule." Santana jokes in a semiserious and Brittany playfully raises her eyebrows.

"Well, I mean if you can pencil me in…" Brittany pulls her hand back when a few of her teammates come by and tugs on her cheer duffle hanging at her shoulder. Santana crosses her own arms and watches, waiting for the two girls to vanish into the locker room.

"I can _always_ pencil you in." As soon as the words come out of her mouth she can feel her cheeks grow hot and Brittany lets out a tiny laugh. "Wow, and that came out way dirtier than it sounded in my head." She shakes her head at herself and grins.

"I'm _totally_ okay with that." Brittany assures her with a shrug.

Down at the other end of the hallway stands Finn Hudson. He hasn't been watching long, just long enough. He can't hear a word Brittany is saying to Santana or vice versa. Frankly, he doesn't have to. He slams his locker shut and turns and walks in the other direction nearly barreling into Quinn Fabray in the process.

"Hey, watch it." She bites back when his giant sized elbow slams into her shoulder. He pays her no mind and turns a quick left to the guy's locker room to get ready for basketball practice completely missing her perfected scowl.

She rolls her eyes and returns her focus to straight ahead and notices Brittany and Santana talking just outside of the locker room. Her pace picks up, only a bit, and she adjusts her cheer duffel strap on her shoulder. When she gets close enough she picks up on the fact that they are talking about April's Rhodehouse.

"Please tell me you guys are comin'." Quinn interjects before they even know she is present. They both regard her with a look, letting her know she is more than welcome to join their conversation. "There's no way I can handle bein' Kurt's wing woman for another weekend in a row." She huffs and her two friends chuckle. "I had to hide in a corner last week when they were havin' a body glitter war."

"That doesn't sound so bad." Brittany muses.

"It is when you have to rub up against some big Russian chick named Rhino." Quinn quickly adds and Santana laughs while Brittany's eyes widen. "True story."

"We should probably get ready or Coach will have us run laps." Brittany points out, not wanting a repeat of last week.

"Yeah." Quinn nods and grabs the door to the locker room.

"I'll see you guys later." Santana says with a wave and goes to leave. "I got work anyway."

"Call me later." Brittany calls out.

"Don't call me." Quinn chimes in from inside the hallway of the locker room. "I'll be havin' a Real Housewives marathon."

Santana smirks and looks over her shoulder to see one last flash of Brittany's blonde ponytail sway until the door closes behind her. She jams her hands into the pocket of her leather jacket and makes her way to the front doors of Knox City High School. There are times like today that she thinks of all the little things she lets get to her and even the big things that she should also sometimes let go of.

The light breeze that a winter's afternoon in Knox brings gives her a nice form of relaxation. Her walk to work, though long, lets her reflect on a week's worth of work on herself. That's what Miss Pillsbury calls her time here in Knox City. Time to reflect and learn and heal and perhaps, even if just a little bit, change.

She thinks of the things, big and little, that she almost lets dictate her life. The way she acts is a direct effect from outside factors. Her mother's letter brought her frustration and anger and some pain. Unfortunately, she acted out much like she usually does. It's not so much that she shouldn't let other things bother her, but to what extent should it?

Moments that she experienced while reading the letter should not make her want to ruin everything that she has done so far. Like, make new friends, reconnect with old ones and do better in school. She doesn't exactly want to ruin those things, but she winds up on her way to doing so by breaking into Aunt Linda's liquor cabinet and making a fool of herself in front of Brittany. She's lucky that Brittany is so forgiving because other people would have tossed Santana out on her ass months ago.

Back in the Knox City High School gymnasium, Brittany goes about her stretching as she normally does, using the bleachers to warm up her hamstring muscles and calves. About twenty feet away Quinn uses the wall to balance herself as she stretches out her quads the way she usually does, far away from the rest of the group.

As Brittany gets both feet on the ground and tightens her pony she is bombarded by a group of her fellow cheerleaders. They are all staring at her and then looking at each other, all with smirks and awkward smiles etched on their faces. Brittany looks curiously at each and every one of them, not quite sure what to expect from this impromptu pow-wow.

"Uh, hey girls." Brittany waves. "What's up?"

"Brittany, me and some of the girls have been talkin'." One short brunette says, her arms over her chest and she glances at her teammates. Brittany assumes the 'girls' are the ones who are standing right in front of her. She nods and sets her hands on her hips then moves side to side, not wanting to lose any motion before they start so she doesn't have to stretch again. "We feel like your head isn't in it this year." She continues when no one, not even Brittany, says anything. Brittany's head tilts, her brow furrows and she stops swaying from side to side.

"What?" She asks, a little thrown off. Brittany is captain of the cheerleading squad, at every single practice and competition and she choreographs most, if not all, of the routines including the one that has gotten them into the qualifiers for the championship.

"You've been totally disconnected." Another one of her squad mates comments.

"And during the _most_ important season of the year." The first girl chimes back in. "And for most of us, this is our senior year."

"I get that you and neighbor girl were major biffles when you were, like, toddlers or whatever. But, she's not any of the girls who've been by your side these past four years." Jessica, her second in command adds, just putting in her two cents. "We've been your girls since freshman year. And she just rolls into town with her leather jacket and bad attitude and you drop us." She points out with clear annoyance but tries to make it sound like she cares that Brittany has apparently been MIA.

"Well, you didn't _drop us_ drop us, but you've been super anti-social." The short brunette jumps in, trying to take away the negative tone that Jessica sort of mixed into the conversation. "If it was 'cause you were dating someone, then it'd be so different. _But_, you're not."

"_And_ she's a lesbian." Jessica reminds her, whispering 'lesbian' in a sing song tone of voice.

"You have sincerely been oblivious. Finn Hudson has been eyeing you up since last summer and all you can do is worry about _new_ girl and Quinn Fabray." One of the other seniors points out. "Who we have no problems with by the way, she is squad after all." She back tracks, not wanting to bash Quinn if by chance this week they are supposed to be friends with her again.

"But, it's hard to keep track of who we're friends with." Jessica explains with a shake of her head and a shrug of her shoulders while a few of the girls look over at Quinn who is now on the floor stretching.

"One minute we're blacklisting Quinn and then we're supposed to be her best girls." Says the girl who initiated the conversation.

"And we, like, cannot depend on you for your squad duties and decision making as captain." Jessica comments with a tilt of her head and purses her lips.

They all stand there, staring at Brittany with Brittany staring back at them, trying her best to absorb the rapid fire of semi-insults that have just been flung her way. She blinks a few times, tugs at her ponytail and glances down at her cheerleading shoes.

"When was the last time you were at a party at Hudson's house or at Stars Lake?" Jessica asks and her minions nod, looking to Brittany for a response.

"You're right." Brittany breathes out because she honestly cannot remember the last time she hung out with her squad when it was not practice or a competition. "I've sort of been missin'." She concedes, mostly because she has no choice in the matter. It has been something her mother has noted but she didn't think that it was that big of a deal to everyone else.

"Perfect." Jessica grins as wide as a Cheshire cat and side eyes the other girls. "I'm sure he wants to give you a personal invitation, but, word is Finn's mom is going away this weekend."

"So, party at Finn's house." Brittany finishes the invite with the obvious. The girls grin and nod, but, then she remembers she already has plans this weekend. She's supposed to go to April's Rhodehouse with her other friends. "Wait."

"Ugh, don't tell us you're already plannin' to ditch us." Jessica complains.

"No, it's… Friday or Saturday?" Brittany wonders, one part hoping for Saturday so that she can go and the other hoping for Friday so that she doesn't have to go.

"Saturday night. Kegs, boys and music." Jessica says and a few of the girls giggle.

"Alright girls!" Coach's voice bellows through the gymnasium as she speaks into her megaphone. "Enough chit chat. Let's get going before you make me regret waking up today." All but one of the girls scatter at the sound of Coach Sue's shout.

"I just wanted to let you know, 'cause we're friends and all," Jessica begins in an almost whisper. "People have been sayin' things about you and that Santana girl." Brittany glances in her direction not at all giving a reaction. When Brittany doesn't say anything back, Jessica sighs and rolls her eyes as she turns to walk backwards so she is facing Brittany. "She likes girls. I mean, _we all know_ you don't." Brittany looks ahead of her where the rest of the squad is getting into formation. "If she makes a move on you don't say I didn't warn ya." She smiles widely, almost annoying and turns to face the right way before jogging to the rest of the girls.

Santana making a move is _not_ the problem, Brittany thinks to herself as she quickens her pace to join her team. Throughout the entire practice all Brittany can think of is ways to_ get_ Santana to make a move. She has basically given her a million opportunities to take the lead. In a way, Brittany can appreciate a little hesitation. She thinks it's cute the way Santana gets all nervous when they are alone together and in intimate situations. Instead of worrying about what other people are thinking and saying, Brittany is thinking about the next time she can kiss Santana.

* * *

><p>By Friday everyone who is anyone is talking about the raging party that is going to happen at Finn Hudson's house. There are even some freshmen who are talking about crashing it because they heard that his parties are legendary. Santana hears through the halls of Knox City High School about the 'bitchin' party' and is so thankful that she will not be attending yet another Finn Hudson party. The last thing she wants to do is go to the house of her sworn enemy and major douche bag.<p>

She found out at lunch that Kurt is going because, apparently, the reason Finn's mom is out of town is because she is having a weekend with none other than Sherriff Hummel who is incidentally Kurt's dad. But, he's not going because it's a Finn Hudson party, he's mostly going to do recon in the off chance their parents wind up together.

Quinn, of course, is planning on not going due to personal and understandable reasons. Although she does comment about how it's getting harder and harder to avoid any high school gathering because her excuses to other people are starting to repeat themselves.

Tina is going because Mike is her boyfriend and a teammate slash sort of friend of Finn's.

Since Santana's not planning on joining the masses and Brittany sort of brushed her off when she asked if she was going, Santana picked up an extra shift at Holly's. Even Holly heard about the party and told Santana that she would still make it even after they closed. It is funny that trying to keep herself occupied to avoid the party wasn't even possible.

Content with refilling pepper and salt shakers for the evening, Santana's thoughts are broken when she hears the bells on the door chime. There hasn't been a new customer in an hour and she inwardly thanks whoever they are for keeping her company. When she looks up from the counter she is surprised to find Brittany Pierce standing on the other side.

"Hey?" Santana lets out in confusion, making Brittany grin.

"Hi." Brittany steps forward and takes a seat at one of the stools.

"Don't you have a party to get ready for?" Santana comments with a nod of her head before getting back to the shakers. Brittany looks down at her outfit and frowns for a moment.

"I am ready." She points out and Santana pauses to look back up.

"Right, so you _are_ going." Santana chuckles noticing that Brittany is wearing extra nice clothes and some eyeliner. "Sure Finn will be happy to see you." She tries not to let it come out that bitchy but she really knows no other way. Brittany sighs and taps her fingers on top of the counter.

"I'd really like it if you came with me." Brittany doesn't sugar coat it at all, just comes right to it. Santana laughs and shakes her head.

"_Yeah_, I don't think that's a good idea." She says and tosses a dish rag into the sink.

"Why not?" Brittany rests her forearms onto the counter top and leans forward. "I asked if I could bring a friend and he said I could."

"Does he know the friend you were talkin' about is me?" Santana asks with a quirked eyebrow. She's a little thrown when Brittany nods. "What did you say?" She wonders and picks up some sugar caddies to distract her mind.

"Well, he came to my locker today and asked me to come to his party." Brittany starts to explain. "I said I heard he was having one and that I was thinkin' about it." Santana nods though her focus is on the sugar packets she is trying to neatly organize. "I told him I thought it would be pretty awesome if you could come since you're still kinda new and don't have many friends."

"Thanks." Santana snorts and gives Brittany an amused look. "And he said 'yes'?"

"I mean, he didn't exactly say _that_ word."

"What did he 'exactly' say then?"

"_Whatever_." Brittany replies with her best Finn impersonation and it makes Santana giggle.

"That's good. You really sounded like him." Santana jokes, finally giving up on her useless distraction and looks up at Brittany.

"Oh yeah?"

"Definitely. You really nailed him." Santana rolls her eyes at herself. "The way he talks I mean. You really… totally sold it." She pats the counter with her hand in an awkward fashion that is luckily missed by Brittany. This isn't the first time she stumbles over her words in front of the blonde and says something slightly inappropriate.

"Sam's better at impressions." Brittany mentions seemingly out of nowhere.

"Oh?"

"Yep, and he's gonna be there so you have to come so you can hear them." Brittany presses, leaning a bit more onto the counter. She can see Santana's demeanor change and she is sure that if she begs a little more she'll cave in and come to the party. "If it totally sucks we can leave." Santana twists her lips and thought and tilts her head as she eyes Brittany up.

"No questions asked?" Santana wonders but Brittany has her confused face on. "If I'm havin' a horrible time and want to leave we can just go. You won't make me tough it out?" She asks.

"Okay." Brittany nods and holds out her pinky. "I promise." Santana smiles and grips Brittany's pinky with her own.

"I have another hour and a half here, so…" Santana grabs a menu and slides it in front of Brittany.

Two hours later Santana finds herself sitting in Brittany's truck on their way to Finn Hudson's house. The only reason she ever thought she'd be going to Finn's house would be to kick his ass. She never thought in a million years she would be going, willingly, to his house for a party. But, she figures, at least she is going with Brittany.

"One of my teammates basically told me she thinks you have a crush on me." Brittany says as they park across the street from the obvious party house. Santana smirks as she flips down the visor to check out her makeup in the mirror.

"That's funny." She hums as she fixes her lip gloss.

"Oh?"

"Yeah, I can _barely_ stand you." Santana winks before opening her door, bag in hand. Brittany snickers and follows close behind. "So, should I expect the typical white boy party? Ya know? Talking way too loud, lots of cheering for absolutely no reason, the over use of the term 'bro' and beer pong?" Brittany pretends to think hard about it before breaking into a grin and nods. "Thought so." She shrugs, ready to get her high school house party on.

It's nothing short of what Santana expects from a Texas high school house party. She's a little surprised that it's her first one. Well, first house party in Knox. She does recall the unfortunate gathering that happened at Stars Lake within the first month or so of her being here and perhaps it was unfortunate because she hadn't quite found her place yet. Even though her place isn't exactly cemented she feels comfort within a certain crowd and at least more than half of them are at Finn Hudson's house right now.

The Hudson house is stocked with booze, music, cheerleaders and letterman jackets. The girls that are usually donning their short cheerleading skirts are walking around in regular street clothes making Santana almost doesn't recognize them. She rolls her eyes when she hears a varsity cheerleader demand a junior varsity girl get her a new cup and how a group of varsity football players are picking on a non-jock sophomore. Her thoughts on how those things are the reasons she never associates with athletes fades away because Brittany is pulling on her elbow and leans in to talk into her ear.

"I see Tina." Brittany says and points towards the stairs by the kitchen where Tina is standing with Kurt while Mike is talking to a few of his football buddies.

"Brittany!" Tina all but cheers when they get within a few feet. "And Santana. Wow, I didn't think you'd be here." She's still smiling but looking at Santana with a tilted head and curious eyes.

"Tina's been enjoying the Jell-O shots a little too much." Kurt says as he leans his shoulder to hers.

"Yeah, my tongue's green." Tina tells them and sticks out her tongue which makes Brittany laugh because it is in fact green. "You guys want some? I think I ate all the green and blue ones…" She frowns when she looks down at the tray of Jell-O shots on the counter a couple of feet away. Brittany looks to Santana who nods at the offer.

"I'll take red, purple or black." Santana sighs and takes a glance around the house. "I'm definitely gonna need some alcohol to get through this." Kurt chuckles and she thanks him with a smirk while Brittany watches a confused Tina brush by her.

"Black Jell-O?" Tina mumbles to herself as she walks over to grab the tray before all of the cheerleaders take them all.

"So, how'd Brittany rope ya into this hetero pre-mating ritual known as a high school party?" Kurt asks, sidling up next to Santana, hooking his arm into hers and pulls her closer to the wall he's been people watching from. Santana looks back at Brittany who grins, nods and then turns away to say hello to a few of her teammates who she hears calling her name.

It only takes thirty minutes after their arrival for Brittany to sneak back up to Santana and tell her that she needs to take Tina to the bathroom. She apologizes, of course, for leaving her alone. But, Santana doesn't mind much. No one has given her a reason to want to run out of here, so, for now she'll stand up against the wall and follow Kurt's lead from earlier and people watch.

She has been successful in avoiding having to say anything to the host of the party, something she is eternally grateful for. But she has spotted him, wandering around his house from group to group, thanking people for coming and every now and again eyeing up Brittany. With Brittany now in the bathroom, he unfortunately still keeps looking over in that direction.

Santana pulls out her phone to check the time, just as she did when Brittany and Tina had hurried off to the upstairs bathroom. They've only been gone for ten minutes, but it is a long ten minutes. She seriously hopes that they get back before another ten go by, because with Kurt on the other side of the room talking to some junior varsity cheerleaders and Mike is making his rounds. There's only so much time she can spend leaning up against the wall.

Luckily the fates hear her internal pleas and she hears the familiar sound of a certain blonde's laughter. Santana looks on as Brittany walks back from the bathroom with Tina close behind. They are talking closely because the music is almost too loud and the boys they go to school with are definitely too loud. They laugh and smile and use their hands to talk as they make their way back in Santana's direction.

Santana smiles.

Brittany is without a doubt _the_ most beautiful person in the world to her. She wishes she had the strength that Brittany seems to possess. She has this ability to freely and without care share her feelings for anything, everything and for anyone. Santana loves Brittany and she wants to tell her.

"Hey." Santana mouths with a smile when she and Brittany finally catch eyes. Brittany grins back and mouths the same. Brittany gets close, taking up the spot right next to where Santana is leaning against the wall. Santana leans over until her nose is practically lost in blonde locks and her lips ghost the pale skin of Brittany's cheek. "You're beautiful." She can feel Brittany shiver with a laugh and she smiles even wider. Maybe it's not what she wanted to say, but she still means it.

"I'm gonna get a drink. You need anything?" Brittany asks, not flinching at all when she feels Santana's fingers discreetly graze hers.

"I'm good." Santana tells her with a smile. Brittany nods, slowly slides her fingertips from Santana's grip and walks towards the kitchen.

When Brittany gets lost in the sea of Knox City teenagers, Santana lets out a sigh and goes back to looking around. She barely gets a chance to turn her head fully around before she sees the parties host standing in front of her. With a grimace on her face she tries to ignore his stare, but it's impossible because he steps closer, letting her know he is here to say something to her.

"You…" Finn stares at her, squinting his eyes as though it makes it easier to see what he has just spotted. "You like her." He breathes out, half surprised, a quarter annoyed, and the rest disgusted. "Like _that_."

Santana keeps her cool and with an eye roll she merely shakes her head hoping she can just stay silent and go on ignoring him. With a sigh she shifts in her spot, pushes herself from the wall and goes to leave Finn to his own devices but she's more than startled when he reaches out and grabs her wrist.

"Brittany ain't no dyke." He spits out in a furious whisper, his beer and whiskey drenched breath covering Santana's face. She looks up at him and tries to jerk her arm free from his grasp, only he doesn't let up and steps in even closer. "She'd _never_ want you." He says through gritted teeth. "She's never gonna look at you that way so just get it outta your head."

Santana pushes against Finn's chest with her free hand and continues to tug the other that is still in his vice like grip. When he finally lets go he smiles smugly at her while she rubs at her wrist and stares back at him annoyed and only slightly afraid.

"Ya know, you're delusional to think she'd ever want _you_." Santana spits out and goes to walk away. Finn sneers and pokes Santana square in the shoulder, bringing his face closer to hers once again.

"You _really_ don't wanna mess with me little girl." He tells her and she scowls up at him. "I can make the rest of the school year a nightmare for you."

"_Oh_?" Santana lets out and flicks his hand away from her. "Is that a threat?" She crosses her arms over her chest and her head bobbles to the side in annoyance. Finn stands up straight and jams his hand into the pocket of his jeans.

"It's a promise." He says with a wink and a smile before he turns to leave her alone in the hallway.

Santana would love to call out after him, tell him how she really feels about him and about all the things Brittany would rather do than ever be with him. Only, she doesn't. Instead, she looks down at the ugly rug in the hallway of the Hudson house and the way the wallpaper is peeling at the bottom. She looks down at her shirt, not really inspecting it or caring what she is even wearing. It's just something to do. Her brain rewinds and replays what just transpired a few times over and over.

With a deep breath she finally walks through the hallway, into the dining room then into the kitchen where her friends actually are. She looks around and sees Mike with Tina on the beer pong table with Kurt cheering them on. Brittany is a few feet away from them talking to a couple of girls from her squad, obviously having got distracted for a moment. She's smiling and genuinely having a good time with them. Sure, Santana wants to leave. She'd love to hop into Brittany's truck and burn rubber. But, she doesn't.

She grabs a red cup, fills it with soda and makes her way to the front yard because fresh air never hurt anybody. When she opens the door she is not really surprised to find it empty, except for some empty cups that other party goers had disposed of. It's a bit chillier than normal, but it only makes the air a little bit easier to take in.

As she sips her soda she listens in on the hoots and hollers coming from inside and she groans to herself. She is sure that high school parties in Knox are 'super fun', but there is something about a party with a dick for a host that leaves her wanting to stay home and watch Lifetime movies with Aunt Linda. Pulling out her phone from her jacket pocket, she flips it open and goes straight to her text messages. For a moment she contemplates sending and S.O.S. text to Quinn, but instantly decides against it.

There are so many reasons she cannot text her buddy to come save her from this self-induced hell. For starters, Brittany. She cannot just up and leave without telling Brittany, which would not be right. Also, she is quite certain that Quinn would not come cruising by Finn Hudson's house just to pick her ass up. Sure they are great friends, but Quinn has valid reasons for avoiding this party at all costs. Thinking about all of that Quinn-Finn drama, only makes Santana get angrier at the stupid boy inside that stupid house.

"There you are." Brittany's voice nearly sneaks up on her. She looks over her shoulder and smiles. The way the porch light shines behind her, it almost captures her personality and just everything about her.

"Yeah, you were having fun with your friends and I…" Santana looks into her cup and swirls her soda around. "I just needed some air." She lies. Air was not needed, space from Finn and his ginormous ego was. She looks forward and hears a soft sigh from behind her and then the gravel beneath Brittany's shoes as she takes seat beside her.

"But, you're all alone out here." Brittany points out that there is no one else in the front to Santana with a wave of her hand. Santana looks out to the empty and dark front yard and nods. "Are you gonna come back inside?"

"I don't know." Santana shrugs and sips her soda. She can tell Brittany is staring at her and it's not just because she can see it out of the corner of her eye, she can feel it. "I don't really fit in." She admits and her tone is almost defeated.

"Nobody fits in." Brittany responds straight forwardly and it gains Santana's attention quickly with a turn of her head. "It's high school." She says as if it explains everything. "Everyone here thinks they fit in 'cause they play football or are friends with cheerleaders but, half of these people are gonna graduate and go off and make friends with people they never imagined they would. I mean, look at Mike, Tina and Kurt." She offers as examples, though Santana isn't quite sure for which side of the coin. "The three of them are gonna get outta Knox and probably never look back. They'll stay in touch 'cause they didn't fit in here together." Her words come pouring out like a poem and Santana is sucked into her art. "I figure, we're stuck in high school for four years so we might as well make the best of it. Go to bad parties and make some memories." She grins and bumps her shoulder into Santana's, finally getting a small smirk.

"Brittany, you really are a genius." Santana says softly and Brittany bats her eyelashes before laughing at her.

"What do ya say we get outta here?" She offers her hand and nods to her truck just across the street. Santana looks over her shoulder at the closed door with the party on the other side that she is not at all missing.

"It's okay." Santana sighs and twists her lips. "You're friends are here and…" Brittany keeps her hand out and nudges it into Santana's.

"Come on, let's go make some memories." Brittany suggests with a wink.

That's all it takes for Santana to put her cup down and take Brittany's hand. They walk to her powder blue truck and drive away without another thought. Either way they are going to make memories, it doesn't really matter where they are. That reason alone makes them smile the whole ride home.

When Brittany reaches across the seat and grabs her hand, Santana forgets everything Finn said at the party and lets go of some insecurities, even if only for this one night. When she's with Brittany she doesn't care much about anything else. She's feels a bit foolish but she'd rather be a fool if it means that she gets to be a fool who's loved by the girl holding her hand as if it's the most important thing in the world to be doing in the moment.

It doesn't take Santana long to figure out that they are not on the road going home. She looks out the window trying to pick up on where they are headed and when she can't she glances over at Brittany and squeezes her hand. Brittany takes her eyes off of the road for a moment and smiles.

"Aren't we goin' the wrong way?" Santana asks and Brittany shakes her head, putting her eyes back to the road ahead of them.

"I wanna show you somethin'." She says. Santana doesn't question her or ask where, she just lets Brittany take her to wherever she wants to.

She's not really all that thrown when Brittany pulls into the parking lot of Pierce Parts and Tires. There weren't many other choices to go on. When the truck is off and the lights down, she can still see Brittany's childlike smile as they get out and head inside of the garage part of the building. Santana tries not to make a sound when Brittany grabs her hand and holds it. Because, when Brittany holds her hand she means it.

"This past year my dad brought me here a few weeks before my birthday. He said he had a surprise for me." Brittany starts to explain, Santana thinks, the reason for their late night visit to Pierce Parts and Tires as she leads them through the garage. "My mother had gotten me pearls, which I guess is nice 'cause pearls are pretty but they're…" She makes a face and Santana finds herself chuckling. "I mean, what seventeen year old asks for that?" She shrugs and so does Santana, because the only she got for her seventeenth birthday was a bottle from Puck, a pair of ridiculously expensive shoes from her father and a one night stand with a girl whose name she never got. "Anyway, after dinner and after my mom went back to the office, my dad brought me here." She brings them to a door in the back, smiles over her shoulder at Santana and tugs on her hand.

"What was this surprise? A new monkey suit?" Santana jokes and gets a small giggle from Brittany. She steps over a tiny step in the doorway, following Brittany closely into the room in the back of the garage that she never even knew existed. When Brittany flips on a switch, Santana realizes that the room is not a room but a smaller garage with what she can only assume is a car underneath a giant tarp.

"Very funny." Brittany pokes her side before letting go of Santana's hand and runs her fingers over the tarp as she walks around it. "He got me a 1957 Ford Thunderbird." She beams and Santana's eyebrows raise waiting for the amazing part to come up. Santana does not find cars as exciting as Brittany does, but she does find Brittany exciting especially when she is smiling the way she is. "It was a mess man." Brittany laughs, obviously remembering the day she first laid eyes on the car that has yet to be revealed. "The hubcaps were completely corroded and the engine was in the trunk in pieces. They weren't even all the original pieces, but bits from other Thunderbirds. The paint job…" She chuckles and shakes her head, finally looking back up at Santana whose eyes are still wide, waiting for the grand reveal. "I mean, there was no paint on it when I got it. It was that dry, grey metal. Just the body of the car really."

"Is this what you've been workin' on every late night you're here?" Santana asks as she takes a step forward and plays with the fabric of the tarp. Brittany shrugs and nods.

"A lot of people would've looked at her and saw junk. I get it, it's an old car with no paint and it's insides on the outside." Brittany explains and Santana giggles. "But, it's so beautiful to me 'cause I know what she was and what she could be again." Santana's smile softens and she watches the way Brittany walks around the car, still covered, and back to her. "I'm finished." She taps the tarp. "I finally finished and the first person I wanted to show was you. So, do you wanna see her?"

"Do I wanna see the other girl you've been spendin' all your time with? Of course I do." Santana jokes and bumps her shoulder to Brittany's.

That small little gesture makes those blue eyes sparkle fiercely and Brittany reaches her hand out to grab the tarp and with three tugs she has it off. When Santana finally pulls her eyes from Brittany's and turns to the car her jaw nearly hits the floor. Her eyes widen and she turns from Brittany to face the magnificence that is shining back at her. She glances at Brittany, but is almost too mesmerized by a car for the first time in her life.

"Britt…" Santana breathes out and walks closer to the car.

"I wasn't sure what color would look good on her." Brittany comments from behind her. "And then a few months ago, a girl shows up in my driveway and it dawned on me." Santana spins around with a perplexed look. "That day you came over to thank me for helping you get into your house, you had this black and red outfit on and I couldn't help but think how good the combo looked." Santana smiles.

"It's…" Santana's eyes are wide and she shakes her head in disbelief. "_She's_ stunning." She whispers and gets closer until she can lean in and look at the inside.

"Go ahead." Brittany tells her. "You can get in."

"Oh, I don't know the rules." Santana says with a shrug and grabs the door handle. "Wasn't sure if I had to ask for permission to come aboard." Brittany giggles as she walks around to the driver's side.

"That's a boat." Brittany points out, amused by Santana's lack of knowledge on motors of transportation. She finds it adorable and oddly enough, kind of a turn on.

"Whatever." Santana playfully rolls her eyes before sliding onto the smooth red leather seat. "Brittany, this is insane. Does it run?"

"Pshh, of course she runs." Brittany waves her hand before letting her fingers slide over the steering wheel.

"So, let's go."

"She's more of a day car than a night car babe." She lets out and immediately feels the heat rush to her cheeks and she sucks in her lips. Santana's eyes are on her, she can feel them, but it takes her a couple of long seconds to turn and look at her. There's an arched eyebrow and a smirk on her lips, basically her resting face whenever it's just the two of them. "I…" She breathes out but nothing follows. No words anyway. What does follow is Santana sliding across the bench seat, closer to her until their sides are touching.

"I'm typically not one for pet names." Santana says in a soft voice, her eyes taking in Brittany's expression, her smile never wavering. "But, hearing them come out of your mouth?" She bites on her bottom lip and tilts her head. "Well, it's kinda sexy. In that, innocent sorta way." Brittany looks down bashfully and lets her hands fall to the bottom of the steering wheel before her right hand is stolen by Santana's left. "So, tell me how you built this beauty."

Brittany gets comfortable behind the wheel and starts to explain how she started putting this car back together. Santana rests her head comfortably against the back of the bench seat leaning her side into it so she can watch the way Brittany's face lights up as she tells her every detail. She could care less how this car was put back together, but the look in Brittany's eyes is so captivating and she hangs on every word that comes out of her mouth. She smiles when Brittany smiles and laughs when she laughs because both are infectious.

They talk into the night and into the early hours of the morning until the conversation turns into yawns and they lean comfortably into each other. Eventually 'just resting' their eyes winds up being them falling asleep in Brittany's fully restored 1957 Ford Thunderbird. Their hands fall to Brittany's lap, still clasped like they were when Santana had grabbed it to tell her how proud and impressed she was of her for making something so beautiful out of nothing.

Santana wakes up and notices the dirt from the road sweeping up around the car. At first her thoughts are of where she is headed, but, then her senses pick up the wind in her hair, hitting her gently in the face and she blinks hard a few times. She still has that early morning sleep in her and she lifts her head up from the door where she's been leaning only to realize that she is not in the usual mode of transportation she's gotten used to being in Knox City, Texas.

Instead, she notices the red interior and when she looks up she finds no roof. Her eyebrows furrow and she glances over to her left only to be engulfed by the beauty of golden blonde hair shining in the morning sun and smooth, porcelain skin. The corner of her mouth tugs up and she half smiles half smirks over in Brittany's direction. Brittany has her sunglasses on and is mouthing the words to a song that isn't even playing, a small smile dancing on her moving lips.

When Santana shifts in her seat, runs her fingers through her hair and clears her throat Brittany finally glances over with a turn of her head. Brittany lifts her sunglasses to the top of her head and hey make brief eye contact but the greeting of 'good morning' is there behind their shy smiles. Brittany's hands fidget on the steering wheel and she takes her bottom lip in between her teeth, and looks at Santana out of the corner of her eye.

"Where are we going?" Santana asks, leaning over slightly, her hands desperately trying to keep her hair from going rogue. Brittany's eyebrows knit together and she leans a little in Santana's direction, obviously having not heard what was said. "I said 'where are we going'?" She yells a little over the wind that is running through and around the open cabin of the car. Brittany's smile grows wider to the point that her teeth show and she removes one hand from the steering wheel bringing it up to the dark sunglasses and she looks over at Santana, handing her the shades.

"Anywhere but here." She tells her with an innocent and carefree attitude that Santana finds reminiscent of her younger self. She catches herself grinning back at Brittany, takes the sun glasses and places them on the top of her head to hold her hair back.

So, she takes the answer for what it is and leans her elbow on the door where the window is rolled all the way down and rests her head against her hand. She takes in the scenery but makes sure that every half of a second to glance over to her left, just to make sure this isn't a dream and then she breathes easily. But only for that half of a second after.

They drive for twenty minutes longer until Brittany pulls the car into an open field, parking it close to the trees that overlook the small town below. It looks a lot like Knox, but Santana figures that every town in Texas looks exactly the same from the top of a hill. She follows Brittany's lead when she gets out of the car and walks towards the front of it. They smile at one another and Santana comments that the car drives nice and smooth.

Brittany smiles and nods stepping forward to take Santana's hand in her own. She looks towards the trees and starts to lead them in their direction. Santana lets herself be led, listening to Brittany point out a bush of poison ivy that she had the unfortunate pleasure of meeting one time as a child when her grandfather had taken her to this very spot. When asked where they are going, Brittany looks over her shoulder with a smile and tells Santana that she'll tell her when they get there.

It seems the closer they get the more Brittany tugs on Santana's hand, leading her through the woods a little faster until they are jogging. Every now and again she looks over her shoulder to make sure the girl behind her is smiling; she is. She tells Santana to hurry up as she kicks her shoes from her feet as they move quickly over dirt, grass and leaves. The giggles from behind her only gas her up, causing her to move faster and faster between trees and bushes.

"Don't stop running until I tell you." Brittany calls out over her shoulder, her own smile threatening to burst her cheeks.

Santana doesn't ask any more questions, confident in Brittany and where she is bringing them. The trees and other greenery seem to vanish, yet they continue to run even though Santana can see that there is an end to the ground they are running on.

"Britt!" She squeals, but Brittany only squeezes her hand tighter in her own.

"You're gonna have to jump!" Brittany hollers, tossing a grin to the girl that is practically at her side now.

"But…" There's clear trepidation in her voice, but her body seems to follow Brittany's regardless.

"Just jump when I tell you, trust me." Brittany assures her as they come full speed to the end of the ground. "Jump!" She shouts excitedly.

And just like that, both girls are airborne, hands clasped together and smiles on their faces. Santana's free hand flails through the air, her eyes wide and mouth open as she gasps for air through her laughter and nerves. The water is there to catch them, but the rush of flying for those few seconds continues to course through their bodies. Santana is the first to rise to the surface, sputtering out water as she giggles. Brittany emerges within seconds, and she raises their still locked hands above the water in victory.

Brittany is in hysterics as she glances up to the edge of the earth they had jumped from, and gazes at it with a glimmer she's had since they were kids. Santana watches her for a few long seconds as her laughter subsides and a tiny, soft smile takes over. She wants to say something, but it hits her that words can't even describe everything flowing through her right now. So, instead of saying something she tugs on Brittany's hand to get her attention.

Brittany moves her gaze from above and to the girl beside her. Santana grins, and Brittany returns the expression, eyes only widening when the other girl pulls her close against her. Their bodies crash beneath the water, creating tiny waves and splashes in the process. Santana's free hand finds Brittany's waist, her shirt and shorts floating in different directions so the contact is skin on skin. Blue eyes search brown ones curiously, while long, slender legs move up and around jean clad tanned ones under the surface.

"What is it?" Brittany asks breathlessly, but Santana's fingers at her lips hush her from speaking further.

"Shh." She whispers out with a thoughtful look in her eye.

They stand there for a few moments, shoulders just above the water, Santana's fingers to Brittany's lips, the movement of their breathing and hearts beating hard causing the water to flutter around them. Cautiously, and so carefully, Santana tilts her head and leans forward, bringing her lips to Brittany's cheek.

It's a gentle kiss, a peck really, that lasts a little bit longer than a kiss there normally lasts. When she lets her lips slide from the Brittany's moist cheek, she lowers her head and rests her chin to Brittany's shoulder. Brittany grins and comfortably leans her head against Santana's. Their hands unwind, letting Brittany be able to wrap her arms around Santana's midsection and pulls her into a tight hug.

"That was so much fun." Santana exclaims, her voice low and soft in Brittany's ear.

They stay like that in the water for a little while, Santana's chin resting in the crook of Brittany's neck. The water gently dances around them as they spin slowly and sway simply enjoying each other's company and the feel of their bodies pressed closely together. It's different from the time at the lake by their houses. There's no playground like banter and joking around this time. It's sweet and romantic and quiet.

After a half hour of wading in the water, the two decide to head back to the car to dry and enjoy the view of Dalton. They laugh at how sopping wet their clothes are and wonder if they are going to be able to find their shoes that they haphazardly lost in the woods while running. Brittany's eyes linger on the way Santana's shirt, soaked from the lake, clings to her in the best ways possible. Santana rings out her hair and then flicks some of the excess water in Brittany's direction.

"Ugh, wet jeans are gross." Santana comments when the fabric starts to cool against her skin and stick to her thighs, not to mention they are riding up her crotch in a very uncomfortable way.

"You can always take 'em off and dry 'em on the car." Brittany points out, taking her own advice and takes her shirt off to ring some water out of it. Santana eyes her mostly naked torso and raises an eyebrow.

"If you want me naked all you have to do is ask. You don't need to use my wet clothes as an excuse." She says and they both chuckle with playful eye rolls.

They take their clothes off, leaving their bra and underwear on of course, and set them flat on the trunk of the car so the sun can dry them. Both Santana and Brittany take little peeks of the other's nearly naked bodies as they make their way to the front of the car. Brittany smirks and taps the front of the car, trying her best to keep her eyes on Santana's and not let them fall to the hot pink thong she's wearing.

Brittany sits on the hood of the car, back pressed up to the windshield and her legs stretched out and spread apart, the perfect place for Santana to fit against her body. Her legs bend at Santana's sides, arms wrap around her possessively, but she doesn't mind and also stakes her claim circling her arms around Santana's mid-section to keep her close. Brittany's chin rests comfortably on Santana's shoulder, their cheeks pressed together, their breathing even and their smiles so soft.

"Where'd you get this?" Santana asks quietly, her index finger running over a small scar just above Brittany's knee. The blonde glances down to the touch that part of her skin she can't feel and breathes out against Santana's neck.

"That tree, where our tire swing is," She begins to explain and Santana leans her cheek further into Brittany's, a sign that she has her utmost attention. "When I was thirteen my mom wanted to get rid of it, she said it made our road look trashy." A throaty chuckle escapes Santana's mouth and Brittany grins at the sound, enjoying the way the laugh shakes against her own chest causing her to giggle in reaction. "Well, I was _not_ having that of course." She explains pointedly and Santana sucks in a deep breath then brings her hand from Brittany's knee to the pale hand splayed across her stomach and laces their fingers together. "I climbed the tree and wouldn't come down so my mom called Quinn to come over to get me out." Again, Santana laughs and squeezes Brittany's hand in her own a little tighter. "She brought candy to coax me from the tree and… I guess it worked." They both laugh out loud and for a few long seconds. "I couldn't get to that candy fast enough."

They settle into a comfortable silence after that, their hands never leaving each other and their bodies as if by another force, seemingly move closer together. Brittany lifts their hands up to eye level, turns them around from left to right as if inspecting them and Santana watches her manipulate the movements of her hand. She stretches out her own fingers against Santana's, causing her to do the same and turns her hand into Santana's until they're palm to palm and slowly runs her fingers down the inside of Santana's hand and runs them back up when she reaches her wrist.

It's soft, the pads of Brittany's fingers gently caressing her palm, her fingers and the inside of her wrist. She's mesmerized not only by the touches but at the pace of it all and how it is as though Brittany's is barely touching her at all but if her body is anything to go by, she is most definitely touching her. It makes her heart rate speed up, her breathing becomes uneven and her mouth feels dry. She licks her lips when she feels Brittany's come so close to her ear and she shivers at the breath hitting her there.

"Can I be yours?" Brittany whispers out and she juts her lower lip out just enough to graze Santana's ear lobe causing Santana's breath to hitch.

Santana swallows hard, she licks her lips again, top and bottom and drags the latter between her teeth as she adjusts in her spot and turns ever so carefully, just enough to look back at Brittany. Her eyes gaze into those blues and flicker down to lips that are slightly parted and daring to smirk before meeting Brittany's stare again. She brings her hand up to cup Brittany's cheek and rubs her thumb across the smooth skin and she grins.

"I kind of thought you already were." Santana half shrugs and lets out a sigh of relief that comes out sounding like a giggle. Brittany's lips finally break out into a smile and she nods. This time they both lick their lips before slowly leaning in to close the only gap left between them in a chaste kiss that soon turns deeper.

Santana turns her body around fully, her hands move to the sides of Brittany and rest against the glass of the windshield letting her body slip between her legs so she is hovering over her. Her lips move from Brittany's, down to her chin then over to her cheek where she makes a trail of soft wet kisses leading to her neck. Brittany tilts her head to the side to give Santana more access to work with, her hands becoming lost in the dark locks just below her eye level.

Brittany's hands come down to Santana's hips, her fingers playing with the thin fabric of the waistband of her thong. It makes Santana grin and giggle through her teeth quickly resting her forehead to Brittany's before leaning down to press their lips together, her hands coming up to grab at blonde hair.

Just as she tries to kiss down Brittany's body with the intentions of not stopping until resting directly between her legs, two fingers coming to her chin and lifting her head up does stop her. She looks up into blue eyes in confusion and she finds Brittany smiling sweetly back at her. She watches Brittany's throat visible move up and down, and gets caught up in the way she chews on her lower lip nervously.

"Is this not okay?" Santana asks with worry. Brittany's mouth opens to speak, but, nothing comes out and her eyes fall to her stomach. "I don't have to go down on you." She assures her and slowly begins to crawl back up, stopping when Brittany bites her bottom lip and closes her eyes tightly. "Britt?"

"I want you to." Brittany says and Santana smiles. "I do. I _really_ do." Brittany opens her eyes and sees Santana nodding, getting ready to move back down between her legs. "And I want to go down on you too. But," She glances around the open space they are and the town just below. "Not here." Santana's smile fades and she finally looks at where they are and understands. It's the middle of the day and they are lying on top of the hood of a car. "Not like this."

"Yeah." Santana sighs and moves back up towards the windshield turning around to sit beside her. "You're right." Her lips twist into a smile of understanding, receiving a kiss on her shoulder from Brittany. "Besides, I've got a shift at two."

They both nod. Brittany had almost forgotten that there was still a world out there that they needed to get back to eventually. But, for now, she was going to enjoy her time alone with Santana where no one existed but them. She smiles at the way Santana casually holds her hand and starts making small talk about what she thinks the town of Dalton is doing at this very moment. Brittany doesn't care much about what everyone else is doing in the world right now though. All she cares about is the way Santana's hand in hers feels, because in her world, Santana is the only thing that matters most.

* * *

><p>Terri walks into Holly's Daze, the bell on the door rings but it's so busy that no one pays mind to another customer. She look around and sees many familiar faces, only a few unfamiliar and her gaze finally falls to Brittany. Brittany is sitting in a booth against the wall with Quinn and Kurt. They are laughing and eating and sipping on their shakes as the rest of the world seems to be background noise.<p>

"Take any free table." Santana says as she quickly passes by Terri.

Santana's carrying a tray of drinks to a table in the corner on the other side of the café. Terri watches as the girl sets cups down and tosses some straws into the middle of the table. The girl is smiling and Terri notes that it's a genuine and polite smile. The table laughs at whatever Santana has said and Terri grows curious.

She looks around and finds a table set for two by the window and only a few back from the booth Brittany and her friends are at. She places her bag on the back of her chair and slowly opens a menu set onto the paper place mat in front of her.

"Santana, order's up!" A voice calls out and a bell rings to the back of the café.

Terri sees Santana look over her shoulder and nod. When she's done with her table she rushes behind the counter, slaps the piece of paper with another order onto the kitchen window counter. Within seconds she's carrying a basket of fries over to the table that Brittany, Quinn and the Sherriff's son are sitting.

Santana places the basket in the middle of the table, but her hand lingers on it and she slowly slides it closer to Brittany. Terri sees the way Brittany's eyes watch Santana's face and how the corners of her mouth turn up just a little bit. Her blue eyes sparkle and her head tilts to the side. Santana is basically giving all of her attention to Brittany and vice versa.

Terri cannot hear the exchange between the two girls, but, by the way they look at each other Terri doesn't need to hear a word. Santana's head tilts and Brittany bats her eyelashes and bites her bottom lip. Kurt and Quinn are either oblivious or are just ignoring the two girls who are clearly in their own world.

"Hey there." Santana says and Terri lifts her gaze from the menu and finds the girl smiling back at her. She's a very pretty girl, there's no denying it.

"Uh, hello." Terri replies.

"Sorry about the wait. We get kinda busy on Saturdays." Santana explains and looks around at all of the people crowding up Holly's Daze to prove her point.

"Oh, it's alright." Terri waves her hand and chuckles slightly. "I'm not even sure what I'm getting' yet." She lies.

Terri Del Monaco always gets the same thing from Holly's Daze; a large salad with the dressing on the side and a barbeque bacon burger with cheese fries to go.

"I'll start with a diet soda though." Santana nods and jams her pen and pad back into her apron

Terri watches the girl walk back in the direction of Brittany's table and tap it with her finger tips as she passes by. Brittany smiles and she assumes Santana is smiling as well, even though she cannot see her face.

It only takes a minute or two before Santana returns with her diet soda, setting the straw down beside it carefully. They both smile and nod at one another and Santana tells her she'll give her some more time with the menu.

"I know what you're doin'." Brittany says, her voice low and tone annoyed. Terri looks up and smiles, staring back at the girl as if surprised to see her.

"Oh, hello Brittany." Terri tilts her head in a mocking way and it causes Brittany to cross her arms over her chest. "I didn't know you'd be here." She lies.

"What's my mom got you doin' now? Spyin' on me in plain sight?" Brittany counters, not wavering in her stance. Terri lets out a laugh that sounds like it's been practiced for situations like this. She waves her hand as if to tell Brittany she's a silly little girl and this is merely a coincidence.

"Just grabbin' some lunch." She explains, holding up the menu. Terri can tell by the look on Brittany's face that she doesn't buy it for one minute, but that doesn't mean she's about to come clean. "So, senior year, huh?" Terri changes the subject in the hopes of a more pleasant conversation. "I remember my senior year." She smiles, remembering her youth fondly. "I was prom queen and my boyfriend Will was my king. I'm sure you'll have no problem winning the title of Knox City High School prom queen for yourself this year." Brittany sighs and crosses her arms over her chest. "Your mother says you've got it in the bag."

"Hey, you two know each other?" Santana comes back over, accidentally interrupting the conversation. They both look at her and Terri is the only one sporting a wide eyed smile.

"This is Terri Del Monaco." Brittany motions with her hand towards Terri who holds out her hand and Santana awkwardly shakes it. "She works for my mother." Santana's hand stops shaking and she slowly pulls her hand away.

"Oh." Santana lets out and jams her hand into the pocket of her apron. "Neat."

"I was just tellin' Brittany here that she's a shoe in for prom queen this year." Terri announces as she reaches for her purse and pushes her chair back, smile not at all faltering. Santana glances at Brittany, confused as hell at this odd conversation. "You'll look so beautiful with Finn Hudson, captain and starting quarterback, on your arm that's for darn sure." She gets up and taps Brittany's shoulder in her most friendly manner. "Dear," She turns to Santana. "I just remembered I have a salad with all the fixins' back at the office and anythin' here will just ruin my diet. Gotta run." Without another word or a blink, Terri Del Monaco is walking out of Holly's Daze leaving Santana confused and Brittany annoyed.

"That was…" Santana shakes her head as she leans to the table and grabs the untouched diet soda. "Weird." She mumbles and walks away to bring the glass to the back. Brittany watches her walk away while she makes her way back to her own table.

"What the hell was that?" Quinn asks when Brittany returns to her seat.

"Oh," Brittany sighs and starts ripping a napkin apart. "Just my mother."

On the way back to the Mayor's office Terri takes her time. She wasn't exactly sent to Holly's by the Mayor, she was just told to keep her eyes peeled and her ear to the ground. So when she happened by the café and saw Brittany sitting inside, she figured she'd do some unplanned sleuthing. So, Brittany was half right because she was there to spy but it was on her own time.

"You're late." The Mayor greets Terri when she catches the woman trying to quietly sneak back to her desk. Terri's eyes widen, bag in hand and half way into her desk chair.

"Sorry Mayor Pierce, I was…" Terri's eyes flicker to the left, quickly, trying to think up something on the spot. "I ran into my old flame and we got to talkin'." She lies, but luckily by the expression the Mayor makes she buys it.

"How is old Will doin' these days?" She asks, yet Terri can tell by her tone that she doesn't at all care much of how her assistant's ex fiancé is doing.

"Oh, he's doin' great I 'spose." Terri hums out fondly remembering Will's charming smile. "He and Emma are still plannin' their wedding."

"They've been plannin' that for some time now. Sure, that'll never happen at the rate they plan." The Mayor comments with a laugh. "Consider yourself lucky to have gotten out when you did or you'd probably still only be engaged." Annie points out but her voice lacks sympathy and her words sort of sting. "That man can't commit to anything."

The Mayor is not just referring to the many woman he has been with over the years, but the fact that he left his hometown of Knox City to try and make it big on Broadway all the way up in New York City. He was gone for about a month before returning broke and alone. Rumor was that he had left with his then fling Holly Holiday, but there was never proof to that. Nevertheless, his personal life was only a dent in his inability to commit to things. After coming back home he changed his career from teaching Math to teaching Spanish at the high school which was far worse for the poor kids of Knox City.

"Well, I'm off to a meeting. Hold my calls." Mayor Pierce says as she walks out of her office and past Terri's desk. Terri nods, hums in response and smiles at her boss.

Sure, she could have told the Mayor that she was late because she had been trying to dig up some dirt on her own daughter and the girl next door. But, seeing the way the two girls acted around one another and how nice Santana had treated her during her short time spent at the café, Terri felt less inclined to share. The way Brittany looks at Santana and the way she makes the other girl smile is something that Terri herself has yet to come across in life and she's been living a lot longer than those two girls combined.

* * *

><p>April's Rhodehouse is just as glittery and 1980's as it was the first time Santana stepped foot inside. Except, this time she is walking in on the arm of Brittany Pierce. It feels weird but in a good way and she kind of feels like royalty. It takes a lot in her not to give a very well-practiced princess wave to random people standing and dancing about.<p>

As they scan the floor to find a nice spot on the dance floor for them to take as their own for the next couple of hours Kurt is stolen away by a boy with serious eyebrows and a nice smile. Quinn grins with a shake of her head and shrugs her shoulders. Santana watches Kurt be led across the room, his hand in the other boy's, and she can't help but smile herself.

Sometimes it's hard to remember that while she is simply a guest in the state of Texas, Kurt is a permanent resident. At April's he gets to be free and happy and not afraid. He gets to be himself. That thought only makes her cling tighter to Brittany's arm.

The song that's been playing since they arrived comes to a close and the familiar voice of April Rhodes comes over the speakers. Like last time, she greets her patrons with her sweet southern voice and welcomes everyone with love as she rolls up and down the dance floor on roller skates. The group laughs and is amazed at April's hosting ability as she skates backwards towards the stage at the back of the bar.

"Now me and my best pal Sandy are gonna be playin' our favorite tunes for ya'll tonight, so we hope you put on your dancin' shoes." April says into the mic and takes a seat at the edge of the stage and crosses her legs. A man comes up on stage behind her and smiles as he looks out into the crowd before pulling a microphone to his mouth.

"So get ready for an evening with Sandy and April's Infinite Playlist." Sandy tells the crowd who cheers.

"Hit it DJ." April points to the other end of the bar to where the DJ's booth is and a new song comes to flood the building and everyone instantly starts dancing like they were born to do just that.

Mike leans in and reminds Brittany of this song from when they were in dance together and even does some moves. Tina and Santana laugh when Brittany responds with some very Mike like pop and lock. It doesn't really go with the song but somehow Brittany makes it work. Clearly Mike is in the mood for some sort of dance off with Brittany as he is moving backwards and motioning for her to join him. Tina follows her boyfriend to the middle of the floor, hypnotized by his swaying hips. Brittany goes to grab Santana's hand to meet them, only there is a tug of hesitation from Santana.

"I think I'm gonna get a drink." Santana says loudly to be heard over the music and puts her hand to her throat. Santana smiles and nods when Brittany leans in closely, lips ghosting her ear, and asks her if she is going to dance with her tonight. She can feel Brittany smile because instantly there is a kiss pressed to her cheek.

It's pretty easy to get to the bar with everyone basically on the dance floor. Tonight's crowd is eating this whole 'infinite playlist' up like drug laced candy. Every few steps Santana glances over her shoulder to check out what kind of moves Mike and Brittany are busting out to try and top the other. By the end of the first track of April's life soundtrack, Santana finally gets her order to the bartender.

"Guess she's not as straight as you thought." Santana turns around at the familiar voice. It's Hope, the girl she went on a horrible date with that one time a few months ago. Honestly, Santana sort of forgot about her.

"Uhh," She looks over her shoulder to where Brittany is and smiles a little to herself before looking back at Hope. "No. Guess not." She shrugs and leans her forearms on the bar top.

"Should be pretty happy 'bout that." Hope sets Santana's drink onto a beverage napkin and takes the money from the bar. "Wouldn't stop talkin' 'bout her." Santana looks down at her drink, trying to remember the date she had with this girl.

Santana grabs her drink and walks back towards the dance floor. She catches Brittany's eye and they smile at each other. Brittany is still busy dancing a few feet away with Mike and Kurt and the boy with the eyebrows while Tina and Quinn are practically yelling into one another's ears right by their dance circle. The music is loud and awesome and Santana can't imagine being anywhere else other than at April's Rhodehouse with her friends.

Tina reaches out and grabs Santana by the arm and pulls her into the mini dance circle that she and Quinn have created and the three of them effortlessly move along to the music. It's different to the music she used to go out and get wasted to. It's different being at a club or a bar or anywhere really with other people and not being completely obliterated. But, as she dances from side to side with a beer in her hand beside her new friends and some old, she can't help but smile ridiculously.

She's smiling because Tina is trying to pull out some serious dance moves and Quinn is copying them but making them appear a bit more refined, like a ballerina trying to do hip hop, and she makes it work. She's smiling because Kurt is dancing next to a relatively cute boy who is staring at him like he wants to kiss him and she hopes he does. She's smiling because right now Brittany is staring at her as if she is the only other person in the place and all she wants to do is love her. But, more importantly, Santana's smiling because she is so in love with the girl staring back at her and she really likes the way love makes her feel.

A couple of songs later and some drinks for everyone, Quinn tugs on Santana's elbow and motions towards the front entrance. She motions with her head towards the door and yells over the music that she wants air. Santana nods and hands her drink to Brittany who takes it curiously.

"You're drunk." Santana laughs as Quinn stumbles a bit once they reach outside.

"I've never seen Brittany like this before." Quinn tells her. "She's happy. I mean, she's always pretty happy but, this…" She motions to Santana. "You ever 'splain somethin' to someone. Somethin' they haven't a clue 'bout?" Santana shrugs, a silly grin on her face. "And at first it's like… you're speakin' Spanish."

"I speak Spanish."

"No, just listen." Quinn hushes her. "At first they don't get it, what you're tryna' 'splain… and then… suddenly their face lights up and they finally get what you've been 'splainin to them for the past hour." Santana thinks about it for a moment and then nods. "That's the look Brittany has when she's around you. It's like _boom_…suddenly the world makes complete and total sense."

"I feel the same way." Santana comments after thinking about her friend's drunken philosophy. Quinn smirks and taps Santana's cheek with the tip of her finger.

"Everyone knows that." Quinn tells her with a laugh. Santana playfully rolls her eyes and shakes her head. "I think I need some water." She groans with a frown and it makes Santana chuckle at how quickly Quinn turned into that girl. With a quick step forward Santana grabs her friend's hand and leads her back inside to get some water.

The bar is packed and so is the dance floor, but Santana easily slips them between the crowd and gets them to the bar. Brittany sneaks up behind her, wrapping her arms around her waist and leans in to kiss her neck. Santana smiles and leans back into her body making Brittany hold her that much tighter. After down two glasses of water Quinn ventures back on the dance floor, telling them to follow her with a shout over her shoulder. Santana taps Brittany's hand on her stomach and the two turn to meet their friends who are still in their little dance circle.

It's nearly midnight when the gang decides to take off their dancing shoes and head home for the night. They part ways in the parking lot, Santana and Quinn having a heart to heart before Kurt has to physically shove his cousin into the back seat where she lies down and is passed out in seconds. As she heads back to Brittany's pick up Santana catches Kurt and the boy with the eyebrows talking quietly by Kurt's truck. She smiles to herself, happy that even if it's miles away from home, they can have their moments without people making judgments.

By the time Brittany pulls onto the South Service Road it starts to rain extremely hard. She puts her windshield wipers on the fastest speed which doesn't seem to help that much. They laugh because they have to basically crawl the rest of the way home only going about twenty miles per hour, if that. Santana shuffles a little closer on the bench seat and takes Brittany's free hand with her own. She clasps their hands and sets them on her lap as she looks out the passenger side window watching the rain come down in thick drops.

Brittany avoids the giant puddle in front of her house by driving around it and easily pulls into the Lopez driveway. She shuts the lights, not wanting them to shine into Miss Linda's home at such a late hour. She throws her truck into park, the thrum of the engine and the pounding of the night rain background noise.

"I had such a good time tonight." Brittany muses with a smile, watching the way Santana's fingers play with her own. "And you looked amazing. Still do." She leans into Santana and kisses her cheek. Santana turns her head and smiles before pressing a kiss to Brittany's lips. "I love you." Brittany whispers between their soft kisses. Santana sighs and pulls back, a tiny grin still on her mouth. She reaches up and brushes some blonde hair from Brittany's cheek and tucks it behind her ear, letting her thumb linger on her skin for a moment or several.

"You're beautiful." Santana says softly.

Sometimes, Brittany wonders if she was born with the ability to hear the words Santana doesn't speak. That perhaps, by the hand of fate, she is capable of understanding because the world gave her someone to love who from time to time forgets how to use words. And for that she is grateful. Because there are moments, sort of like this one, when words aren't needed or when other words can be used to substitute how someone truly feels.

Even when Santana doesn't say a word, Brittany understands. She knows when she rolls her eyes a certain way that just she's bored, not annoyed. Brittany has always been able to decipher the mysterious language spoken and not spoken by Santana. The most important piece of translating though, is giving Santana the time to figure out exactly what she is saying for herself.

And somehow, the words 'your beautiful' mixed with the sound of rain hitting the window means something else. It means 'I'll never let you go' and 'Please don't ever let me go'. It means 'tell me I mean something to you, not everything 'cause that's a lot, but that I'm something important' and it means 'you're better than any secret or song I have ever heard and better than anything I could have ever imagined'. But mostly, to Brittany, it all sounds like three words that for some reason or another Santana is far too afraid to actually say; 'I love you'.

But it's okay. Because even if she isn't saying those three not so little words, Brittany knows it to be true. She knows it's there underneath the softness of the way those other words slip from Santana's tongue and past her lips. It's the way she blinks as she speaks because it almost hurts how much she feels. As if blinking as she speaks makes the pain of her overloading emotions an easier pill to swallow. To Brittany, this difficult ease is more beautiful than hearing 'you're beautiful', probably because she's always been fluent in Santana.

Every time Santana says that, 'you're beautiful', all Brittany can think is that she means something else. Not entirely of course. She can see it in her eyes that she means what she says. But, it's the way she says it. It's how her voice sounds, sweet and shy, yet confident and sure.

* * *

><p>A few days later Brittany sits in the Lopez house watching Santana fold her laundry. She sits on the bed as Santana separates her clothes before she begins her folding process. Santana explains to her how she does things a certain way to stay organized and all Brittany can think is that she should get better at that because her room is a mess.<p>

"Hey, do you wanna go see a movie?" Brittany asks.

"Oh, umm, I don't know." Santana shrugs as she folds her clothes and places them into her dresser drawers. "Anything good out?" She asks sending a quick glance over her shoulder.

"They're playin' Dirty Dancing down at the old drive-in." Brittany replies and Santana hears the bed shift behind her. "Since they're plannin' on redoin' it they're showin' two dollars a car movies." Brittany explains.

"Ugh, I've seen that movie like five billion times." Santana grumbles. "Not that I would ever want to put Baby in the corner, I'm just sure I've had my She's like the Wind fill about five years ago." She chuckles as she lightly presses her clothes down and shuts the drawer. "Besides, I'm sure everyone from school is gonna be there and I for one am okay with not havin' to see them more than necessary." She stands up and grabs the laundry basket to carry back out to the laundry room. When she turns around she finds Brittany with a perplexed sort of look on her face. "What's wrong?" Santana asks wondering if she has somehow offended her friend. Brittany sucks in her lips and takes a deep breath. "Britt?"

"I've never done this before." She laughs at herself and rubs her palm to her forehead before running her fingers gently through her blonde hair. Santana's eyebrows rise in confusion.

"Done what?" She wonders, clearly not on the same page as Brittany.

"Well, I mean, I wasn't just askin' to see a movie to see a movie." Brittany tells her but Santana still doesn't follow. "I guess, well, this is me askin' you out on a date." Santana's mouth opens and her eyes widen a bit making Brittany laugh and smile.

"Oh." Santana sighs out and she moves the basket from hand to hand. "Okay… umm…" She twists her lips and taps her toes on her bedroom floor. "A _date_ date?" She asks and Brittany stares blankly at her. "Like, a real date?" A smirk forms on Brittany's lips.

"What's a fake date?" Brittany counters with a raised eyebrow. Santana sighs and lets out an awkward giggle as she shrugs her shoulders.

"I don't know." She mumbles and moves to hold the laundry basket in both hands. "The only dates I've ever been on are ones with no clothes." Brittany's eyes widen a bit and she tries to cover the smile of embarrassment that curls at the corners of her mouth. "I guess those don't count, huh?"

"_Those_ are booty calls." They both giggle and shift in their respective spots. When Santana doesn't say anything, Brittany tilts her head and plays with her hands in her lap. "_So_, I mean, we can go just as…"

"_No_. I'm… I just…" Santana finally puts the laundry basket down and decides it's time to fix her hair. "I don't think I've ever been on a real date." She admits, a little surprised by this fact. "Actually, I've never been asked out on a real date."

"_Well_," Brittany smiles the smallest of hopeful smiles. "I've never asked someone out on a date before." She points out as if this suddenly makes them even. The way Santana's head nods side to side tells her it worked. "There seems to be a lot of stuff neither of us have done before. So, let's just do 'em together." Brittany says and Santana's eyebrows rise as she grins. "And that sounded more sexual than I meant it to sound."

"I hope that doesn't mean you're sayin' no sexual stuff." Santana skates around in a softer tone and puts on a pout and Brittany eases her with a smirk.

"I guess…" Brittany drawls out and Santana shrugs, letting out another awkward moment giggle. "I don't know. We'll see." She bites her bottom lip and studies Santana for a quick second. "You don't have any weird fetishes do you? 'Cause…"

"Not that I'm aware of." Santana jumps in before Brittany can list strange sexual desires. "Just your regular girl on girl." Brittany nods and sucks her lips in. "Why, do you?"

"I have this thing with my armpits." Brittany replies as she pushes herself up from the bed, her eyes fixed on Santana in a playful way. Santana's eyes widen and her eyebrows rise up to her hairline. Brittany laughs as she walks up to Santana and pokes the tip of her nose with her finger. "You're _so_ easy." She shakes her head as the realization of Brittany's joke comes over Santana's features. "So, I was thinkin' Thursday." Brittany continues and moves over to Santana's desk and starts looking at the books on her desk.

"Thursday?" Santana asks with a shake of her head, still recovering from the idea of almost having a girl with an armpit fetish asking her out, though she's quite certain she wouldn't deny Brittany anything which sort of surprises her. Brittany looks over her shoulder and grins with one of Santana's English books in her hand.

"For our date." Brittany clarifies. "Movie starts at 7:30. I'll pick you up after dinner." She puts the book back down and turns on her heels, heading straight for the door where Santana is still standing. "I have homework to do, I'll talk to you later." She smiles and leans in to give Santana a quick peck on the lips leaving her no time to protest any part of the date she has so clearly already planned out.

Santana stands in her room, laundry basket at her feet and a fuzzy feeling in her chest. She bites her bottom lip, hiding a smile from only herself, and hums as she moves over to her bed and plops down. It's the first time she's ever been asked out on a proper date and the first time she's ever been excited for a movie in her life.

* * *

><p>Santana is sitting on the top of the desk while Quinn sits in her usual chair with her textbook out and highlighter in her hand. They have been making small talk here and there but Quinn is mostly focused on her homework while Santana's interest is what is on the other side of the glass. She sits there on the desk, legs crossed at the knee with her hands, palms down, on the desk top as she leans back. Her head is tilted to the side and her eyes are dreamily staring across the garage at Brittany as she works feverishly on some car.<p>

The more Brittany tugs and pulls and twists and turns whatever tool she is using, the more her muscles bulge and the more she sweats. Santana, with a small smile dancing on her lips, stares on intently when Brittany wipes her hands on some gross cloth that she unceremoniously tosses to the side and fixes her hair. But that's not all she does. When her hair is securely out of her face she grips the bottom of her dirty white t-shirt and pulls it up just high enough to wipe her face thus exposing her perfectly toned stomach.

Santana hums to herself at this sight and Quinn, who has been peeking up from her studies, catches the entire scene and arches an eyebrow. She can't help but smirk then snort a bit when Santana's mouth starts to move like she is whispering and then bites her bottom lip.

"Hmmm?" Santana's eyebrows rise and she turns to look at Quinn.

"Nothin'." Quinn giggles and shakes her head as she flips to the next page in her textbook. "You sure you didn't come here to oogle Brittany's goodies?"

"I don't oogle, Quinn." Santana defends and then glances back at Brittany through the glass. "I am simply admiring the art of mechanics." Quinn finds this even more humorous and Santana scoffs.

"More like admiring Brittany's abs." Quinn again arches on of her perfectly shaped eyebrows and points her pen in Brittany's direction.

"Exactly. The mechanics of her super fine physique." Santana whispers as she uncrosses and then crosses her legs. "How do you pay attention to homework while you're here?" Santana groans and flicks at Quinn's pen. "I'd never get anything done."

"That's because when Brittany's around, you are easily distracted." Quinn comments, highlighting a few lines in her book.

Before Santana can come up with a witty retort, the glass door from the garage to the office opens up and she turns around. It's Brittany and she has grease marks on her cheeks, sweat on her brow and a dirty rag in her hand. They smile at one another before Brittany turns her attention to Quinn behind the desk.

"Can you call Mr. Evans and tell him that his radiator is shot, he needs new suspension and he needs an oil change?" Brittany asks, her voice sounding frustrated and a bit tired. Quinn nods and reaches across the desk, grabbing a big yellow binder. "And remind him that it'll be way cheaper to go out and get a pre-owned car. My dad can give him a great deal at the dealership." Quinn hums a positive response and picks up the phone when she finds the number in the giant binder.

Santana looks away from what Quinn is doing, because it's boring, and turns back to Brittany who is most definitely _not_ boring. Brittany leans in the doorway and wipes her hands on the rag that looks as though she has been using the same one for a week because it is that dirty. Santana jumps back onto the counter top and crosses her legs, expecting Brittany to tell her that they can head out in a little while.

"Looks like I gotta stay here a bit longer." Brittany's lips twist, obviously not all that happy to say this to Santana. "Ken forgot to take inventory and we have this engine that needs to get at least half way fixed by tomorrow." Santana pouts and Brittany shakes her head, grinning at how adorable she looks. "I can meet you guys in about," She glances up at the clock on the wall above the door that leads outside. "Two and a half hours. Give or take."

"Yeah, sure." Santana gives in with a shrug. "Quinn and I can use the time to bond." She smiles and peeks over her shoulder at Quinn who is still on the phone with Mr. Evans. "She's a little boring." Santana comments, picking up her friends highlighter to prove her point.

Brittany laughs with a shake of her head before she turns back into the garage. Santana watches her walk away, letting her eyes fall to her arm muscles and then to her ass. She sighs and tilts her head to the side when Brittany leans over the engine to get a better look at whatever it is she's looking for. Quinn rolls her eyes and flicks Santana's arm.

"Let's go before you start drooling onto the floor." Quinn says as she gets up from the chair and collects her books. "I'll leave without you." She calls over her shoulder when she gets to the door, knowing Santana has not yet hopped off of the desk to follow her.

The two decide to go hang out at Santana's house until Brittany can get away from the garage. Aunt Linda is happy to see Quinn in her house and makes it a point to put Santana on the spot for taking so long to invite the girl over. When Santana finally gets them away Aunt Linda only bothers them once with a plate of cookies that she just poured out of the box and two cans of room temperature soda.

"So, how've things been goin'?" Quinn wonders and Santana shrugs. "Do you guys just sit around and talk about how much you love each other?" She laughs and takes a seat in Santana's desk chair. Santana's eyes roll and she moves to sit on her bed. "Oh, you've been lookin' at U of T, huh?" Quinn asks as she picks up a brochure.

"Yeah." Santana replies without much excitement.

"Santana, what are you gonna do for the rest of your life?" Quinn jokes but Santana has seemed to fall into some kind of feelings abyss. "What's wrong?"

"I'm afraid." Santana admits as she lays down on her side, her arm tucked under her head and her eyes gazing off into the corner of her room.

"Of what?" Quinn asks, her chair spinning coming to a halt and she faces Santana. There's no reply at first, just a few blinks and a sigh, so Quinn remains silent. She figures her friend is simply coming up with the words to describe an uncharacteristic feeling.

"That I'm exactly what everyone thinks I am." Santana finally lets out with sadness in her tone.

"And what's that?" She knows all of the answers, but it's obvious to her that Santana needs to vent.

"A loser. A disappointment." Santana lists and Quinn bites the inside of her cheek. "I'm just… afraid."

"First off," Quinn cuts her off and waves her hand. "You're none of those things that you think you are."

"That's what Brittany says." Santana comments.

"Well, she's right so you should listen to her. She's kinda smart."

"And second?" Santana lifts her head from her arm a bit and for the first time looks over at Quinn.

"And second," Quinn takes in a deep breath and lets it out slowly. "I think you'd feel better if you told her how you feel." Santana looks away again and sets her head back down to her arm. She nibbles on her bottom lip for a few moments, clearly thinking. "At least tell _me_ how you feel."

"I just wanna be with her." Santana seems to groan out in a long breath and it's as if the words or the thought or the keeping it inside is so agonizing. Quinn imagines it's the latter. "I wanna be around her _all_ the time." She kicks her feet, adjusting her position ever so slightly and she clears her throat. "I know it sounds intense and nondescript, but, that's how I feel. I just want Brittany." She admits in a softer, much more vulnerable voice and Quinn is taken aback by it. "Every time I try to say the words, something else entirely comes out. It feels like… like, the words I wanna say don't hold a candle to how I feel and I guess that's why I can't say them."

"Kurt thinks she knows." Quinn chimes in with a shrug and sways side to side in the chair. Santana's head pops up from her arm and her eyes narrow to Quinn.

"_What_?" She spits out, but Quinn pays no mind to the look of horror and slight scowl she is receiving from Santana. "What does he know?"

"About how Brittany is head over heels in love with you and that you turn into a love sick, might I add drooling, puppy dog whenever she's around." Quinn explains, a small smile on her lips, and her tone overly pleasant. Santana on the other hand quickly moves into a sitting position, her hand leans on the bed and her brow furrows.

"You guys talk about me when I'm not around?" Santana asks, offended by such a thought.

"Of course we do." Quinn deadpans. "What do they talk about you in front of your face in Boston?"

"That's… I can't…" Santana stumbles over her words, her hand comes up to her forehead and she closes her eyes. "What else does Kurt _think_?"

"That you're not as scary as you think you are." Quinn grins widely and Santana's jaw dramatically drops. She flips her hair and moves to sit at the edge of her bed.

"I don't know what to be more upset about."

"Upset about what?" Brittany's voice pops into the room out of nowhere and she's standing right there in the doorway of Santana's bedroom as soon as the two turn and look.

Quinn chuckles as she spins around in the chair a few more times because she can hear Santana stammer, trying to come up with something on the spot. Brittany eyes the both of them curiously as she enters the room slowly.

"We were just talkin' 'bout the drive-in." Quinn jumps in and saves Santana from what appears to have been an almost meltdown. Brittany seems to beam at this and gives Santana a quick look as she takes a seat beside her on the bed. "Heard they're gonna test it out this Thursday, see how they do. If it brings a big enough crowd, they're gonna re-open it." She explains. "Kurt and I are goin' with Mike and Tina. Please come. He's tryin' to get us to dress up. Make it stop." She groans and throws her head back. "I never thought havin' a gay cousin would be _so_ exhaustin'." She stops spinning and looks at Santana. "No offense." Santana shrugs and shakes her head letting her know that she is not at all offended by the statement.

"We were actually already plannin' on goin'." Brittany says and bumps her shoulder into Santana's.

"Thank God." Quinn sighs in relief, but tilts her head when she notices the small not so subtle looks her friends are giving each other.

"Yeah, so…" Santana drawls out, looking to Brittany to give an answer because she can't think of one. When Brittany only stares back at her, Santana takes initiative and reaches out for Brittany's hand. "Quinn knows. I hope you're not mad, I just… I need someone to talk to and I can't tell my aunt and Puck is God knows where, not that it matters 'cause he's a pervert anyway and…" Brittany and Quinn laugh. "What's so funny?"

"_Who_ do you think _I've_ been talkin' to? My mother?" Brittany continues to giggle and shakes her head.

"I can't even imagine her reaction if you did." Quinn's eyes goes wide just envisioning Mayor Pierce being a listening ear to her daughter's girl problems.

"Well, I'm gonna tell her." Brittany says after a few moments. "I just have to find the right moment."

"That's never." Santana chimes in and Quinn looks between the two of them, very certain she does not want to be a part of this conversation.

"After the drive-in we were gonna go to Carmel's." Quinn changes the topic and gets their attention almost immediately. "You guys should come with."

"Oh, uh…" Santana looks over to Brittany who smiles at her. "We were sort of gonna be goin' together." She says and Quinn stares, waiting for more information. "Like, just us."

"We're goin' on a date." Brittany clarifies and Quinn's eyebrows raise in surprise. "It's our first official date, so, we kinda want to be alone."

"_OOhh_, how romantic." Quinn coos and they both look away because they can feel the heat burning in their cheeks. "That's cute guys, really." She giggles trying to make them less awkward but it's of no use.

"Thanks." Santana sighs with a roll of her eyes.

"Well, on that note, I gotta get goin'." Quinn jumps up from her seat and grabs her bag. "I have a ton of homework to do."

"How do you still have homework? That's all you were doin' at the garage." Santana points out in confusion.

"Some of actually try in school." Quinn quips and heads to the door. "Catch ya later." And with a wave, she's gone.

Brittany and Santana catch each other's eye and they smile bashfully at one another. Santana is about to say something when Aunt Linda comes out of nowhere and interrupts her thoughts. She tells Brittany that Santana should be getting some school work done and that perhaps it's time for her to go home. Santana curses Quinn, she's sure she made a comment about leaving to do homework to her aunt and she is surely going to get her back for that.

"Well," Brittany pushes herself up from the bed. "So much for hangin' out." She shrugs.

"Yeah, right." Santana says following Brittany's lead and gets up from her bed too. "I guess, I'll talk to ya later then."

"Yeah." Brittany nods as she shoves her hands into her back pockets. Before she can turn to leave the room Santana takes a step forward and leans up to press a quick kiss to Brittany's lips.

"G'night Britt." Santana says with a sweet smile.

"Night Santana."

* * *

><p>The entire time Brittany is getting ready for her date with Santana, all she can think about is what a date usually entails. She's watched enough movies to know that there is hand holding, cuddling and sometimes there's kissing. But, they aren't going to be in the comfort of Santana's bedroom or even her own. Fact of the matter was they aren't going to be alone.<p>

In the Lopez house, Aunt Linda watches on suspiciously as her niece practically runs in and out of her room to the bathroom a few dozen times. Three of those times she was in different outfits. Linda tries her best not to be nosy, she's not the girl's mother after all, so she makes her way into the kitchen to get a snack. In the middle of putting the tea kettle on the stove top she hears some noise coming from down the hall.

"You okay in there?" Linda calls out. What she gets in response is a muffled grunt which she accepts as a 'yes' in teenager.

Santana stands in front of the mirror in her room. It's one of those full length ones that she basically had to beg Aunt Linda to get her. She looks herself over from top to bottom and even turns to the side and all the way around to get a good view of everything she has to offer. It's the first time Santana has ever been on a date before and she isn't about to fuck it up. Brittany was so sweet and cute when she asked her that she is nervous she'll ruin it.

Aunt Linda turns away from the cabinet when she hears the tell-tale clacking of Santana's shoes making their way down the hall and into the kitchen. She smiles at what she sees. Santana looks beautiful, as always of course. But even more so, she looks as nervous as ever and it is so endearing. Her hair is absolutely perfect, her makeup barely there yet flawless and her outfit is grown up but fitting for a teenage girl.

"Well, don't you look nice?" Aunt Linda grins and turns all the way around to get a full look at her niece.

"Really?" Santana asks, uncertain. "Is it too dressy? Or clubby?" She worries, her eyes glance down at her outfit as her hands trace over the fabric.

"Too dressy or clubby for what?" Linda wonders.

But before she gets an answer there is a knock at the front door and it catches both Lopez women's attention. Linda looks expectantly to Santana who is staring back at her with wide eyes. With a smirk and a giggle she goes over to get the door while Santana runs back into her bedroom probably for one last glance in the mirror.

Aunt Linda is not at all surprised to find Brittany standing on her porch looking a little more dressed up than usual. She smiles as she opens the screen door and tells her to come inside. Brittany nods and lets out a long breath as she steps over the threshold. Linda remembers being nervous about dates and this was clearly their first date and she thinks it is so sweet.

"You look so lovely tonight Brittany." Aunt Linda comments and smiles at the young girl who is as nervous looking as her niece. Brittany smiles politely back as she swings her hands back and forth at her sides until finally clasping them at her back.

"Thanks Miss Linda." Brittany replies and swallows, her throat feels a bit dry. The sound of Santana's heels catch her attention and she looks over just in time to catch her walk into the light. Her breath feels like it's been stolen right from her chest and her mouth hangs slightly open.

"Hey." Santana grins at Brittany's reaction to her all dolled up for their date. She too finds herself in awe at how beautiful Brittany looks and suddenly cannot think of anything else to say.

"Hi." Brittany lets out in a breath, her eyes shamelessly raking up and down Santana's entire body. "Ummm," She shakes her head back to reality when she hears Miss Linda clear her throat, she had completely forgotten they weren't alone. "We should probably get goin'." She motions over her shoulder towards the door, quickly averting her eyes to anywhere but at Santana because looking at her is making her cheeks burn.

"Have fun ladies." Aunt Linda calls out to them before she shuts the door. She watches from the bay window as Brittany opens the passenger side door for Santana and helps her in by the hand. Linda grins to herself and turns back to the kitchen where her tea kettle is whistling before Brittany even gets to the driver's side door.

When they pull into the drive-in movie theater just off the highway Santana takes a quick look around to find that it is just as she suspected. Most of the drive-in's crowd is that of Knox City High School. Brittany shuts the engine off and reaches over to open the glove compartment to reveal a hand radio. She sets it up right up on the dashboard, turns it on and switches the dials until she lands on the right one.

"The radio in my truck has been wonky." Brittany explains the hand radio. "This way, we don't miss a thing." Santana snorts and then clears her throat as if she hadn't just laughed through her nose.

"I could recite this movie in my sleep." Santana admits jokingly and it makes Brittany grin.

"Alright we have…" Brittany presses a button on her phone to check the time. "Fifteen minutes 'til show time. Treats?" She quirks an eyebrow.

"Yeah, we can get whatever you want." Santana nods and goes into her purse. "Here, you paid to get in."

"It was two dollars."

"Still, let me…"

"Santana, _I_ am the one who asked you out. Please, it's my pleasure." Brittany says as she pushes her door open. "I'll be back in five. Snacks in hand."

"Okay, I'll just wait here and look pretty."

"You're beautiful." Brittany corrects before she shuts the door and vanishes among the sea of cars and townsfolk.

Brittany gets on line and it's only about ten people deep. She looks around as she waits, trying to see how many people from her grade are here for the first drive-in movie in years. There are a few people from a couple of her classes that she spots, but, for the most part it's a lot of people around her parents' age. Brittany figures there aren't a lot of kids her age who can appreciate outdoor cinema. Just as she is turning her attention back to see if the line has moved, a hand grabs her elbow.

"How's the date goin'?" Brittany knows who the voice belongs to and she is sort of comforted by it. She turns around and finds that she is right and smiles at Quinn who is grinning back at her like a proud mama bear.

"She's nervous." Brittany grins and shakes her head.

"And you?" Quinn wonders.

"So am I." Brittany admits. "I've never been on a date," She whispers. "With someone I actually like." Quinn can understand this and nods. Brittany looks at her, like finally looks at her and then over her shoulder to where Kurt, Tina and Mike are standing which is just outside of Kurt's truck. "Guess Kurt is the only one who dressed up, huh?" Quinn laughs and looks over her shoulder to where her cousin is, decked out in his best Johnny gear.

"Yeah." She says slowly, turning back to Brittany and the move up in the line. "That boy he met at April's is supposed to be meeting us. They planned their get ups accordingly."

"Is he dressin' up as Baby?" Brittany deadpans.

"Who knows?" Quinn shrugs. "That'd be a little weird, but, to each their own, huh?" Brittany nods and they move up some more. "Santana told me about Finn's party. Kinda fucked her up." Quinn makes a face of regret when she sees how confused Brittany looks. "_And_ she didn't tell you about that."

"Nope." Brittany lets out as they take another step towards the snack counter. "What happened? I mean, I found her sittin' outside by herself at the party, but she didn't say anythin'." Quinn shifts uncomfortably in her spot and her eyes cast down to her feet as she does so.

"I _probably_ shouldn't tell you then, but…"

"But you will."

"He said that he knows Santana has a thing for you and that you weren't the 'd' word so she should back off." Quinn summarizes the events of that night. Brittany's brow furrows and her mouths opens as she takes in the information.

"What's the 'd' word?" She innocently asks. Quinn glances around and steps a bit closer to Brittany so she can whisper the answer to her.

"Dyke."

Brittany's eyes widen. Not in surprise or shock that Quinn has just said 'dyke', but that someone used the word in such a derogatory way _and_ claiming something about herself without her say so. More so, she is pretty peeved that it was Finn who said the word. Brittany knows exactly who she is and she doesn't need someone else labeling her, especially in mean way to make themselves feel better.

"Look, I probably shouldn't have even told you this and especially not on your date night." Quinn shakes her head at herself and places her hand on Brittany's shoulder comfortingly. "Don't let this spoil your night. Set it aside and deal with it at another time. Santana will never forgive me for ruining this for you guys." She begs.

As much as Brittany would like to storm over to Finn's ugly electric blue, oversized pickup truck she spotted on the way in, she decides that Quinn is right. She'd love to put him in his place and tell her exactly what she thinks of him. But she'll save that for another day, because tonight is all about her and Santana and their first date. So, she nods and gives Quinn a small smile, letting her know that mums the word until it's absolutely necessary.

"Awesome." Quinn faux cheers and they take a step forward so that they are next on line. "So, what're we gettin'?"

Two tubs of popcorn and a few random candies later, Quinn and Brittany part ways and head back to their respective trucks.

"You still like Twizzlers and Kit-Kats right?" Brittany asks when she opens the door, startling Santana who had been checking her makeup for the seventh time since Brittany left.

"Yes." She smiles and flips the visor back up. "Here, let me help you." She holds her hands out and takes the tub of popcorn and soda so that Brittany can maneuver herself back into the truck without spilling or dropping anything. "Britt, did you buy one of everythin'?" Santana laughs when she takes stock of all the goodies Brittany has brought back. Brittany grins and looks at all the candy in her hands.

"I just wanted to be sure to get everythin' you liked." She replies innocently. Santana can't help but smile, her head tilts to the side and she looks at Brittany sweetly. Their attention is stolen by the hand radio on the dashboard, signaling to them that the movie is about to start. "Here."

Brittany leans across and pops open the glove compartment once more, pulling out a portable cup holder which she sets up. She grabs the soda from Santana's hand and places it into the cup holder. Then she grabs the candy from her lap and moves closer to the middle of the bench, closer to Santana, and sets all the candy down to the seat on the left of her. She smiles at Santana as she grabs the popcorn from her with her left hand and holds it between them.

"You know," Brittany says as she grabs a handful of popcorn. "You really do look beautiful tonight." Santana can feel the heat in her cheeks and she grins.

"Thank you." It's all Santana can come up with while she unceremoniously and so obviously, she shuffles closer to Brittany, acting like she's getting closer for the popcorn that she grabs.

"Is it…" Brittany starts as the beginning credits starts coming onto the screen. "Can I hold your hand?" She asks, slowly turning her head to Santana who is shaking her head.

"You don't even have to ask." She replies as she reaches out and grabs Brittany's right hand. "I should be askin' you. I mean," Santana looks out her passenger side window to where she knows a few Knox City High School students are parked. "Everyone knows I'm a lesbian. No one knows that you're… well, you." They look at one another, both taking in the weight of the statement.

"No." Brittany breathes out with a smile. "They think they do, but," She squeezes Santana's hand a little bit tighter. "No one knows me. Not as well as you do." After a long moment of staring, Brittany lets out a nervous laugh and looks towards the screen where the Houseman family is getting comfy at their summer retreat. "I mean, they think 'cause I'm _Brittany Pierce_ it means they know exactly who I am."

"You mean like that woman from Holly's the other day? The one who works for your mother." Santana points out and Brittany shrugs. "She said somethin' about you being prom queen."

"Yeah." Brittany drawls out and looks down at their clasped hands.

"Is that, like, a done deal?" Santana wonders as she grabs some popcorn and pops it into her mouth. "I mean, is it legit or was she blowin' smoke?"

"It's legit." Brittany mumbles. She feels weird talking about being nominated and always has.

"That's awesome." Santana beams. "So, how does it feel? I mean, in every romantic comedy and basically every teen soap opera, there's always a girl who wants to be prom queen. I mean, not me. But that's 'cause I'm a juvenile delinquent." She finally laughs when Brittany grins at her bashfully.

"Oh, it's magical." Brittany jokes and rolls her eyes at herself. She shakes her head and adjust the tub of popcorn on her knee. "It's silly. I feel silly." They both glance at the screen when the scene of Baby carrying the watermelon comes on and they smirk at the 'I carried a watermelon' line.

"Why do you feel silly?" Santana asks, peeling her eyes from the screen and back at Brittany.

"I've been homecoming queen and spring fling queen and every other queen since sophomore year." She explains and only bows her head when she realizes how incredibly conceited she sounds.

"You're so modest." Santana lightens the mood with her sweet tone. Brittany knows she's only making fun and not being a bitch.

"No, it's… it's just funny to me because, obviously people know who I am. But, no one really knows who I am. They just see me as Brittany Pierce, captain of the cheerleading squad and most popular girl in school. People see me, but they don't."

"I wish I understood what you were sayin', but, if it's any consolation… _I_ see you." Santana shifts a little bit closer, so that she is pressed lightly into Brittany side and she sets their clasped hands into her lap. "_Ooh_." Santana perks up when she glances at the screen. "This is one of my favorite parts." She points with her free hand. Brittany smiles and looks at the Santana's face as she watches one of her favorite scenes play out on a big outdoor screen.

It's the scene where Johnny and Baby first dance. It's dirty, hence the movie title, and hot and because they know the ending, it's also cute. It reminds her a bit of the time she danced with Santana in the garage over a month ago. They danced and Brittany finally made her move and kissed Santana. She wonders if watching this made Santana think about that night too.

About halfway through the movie their hands come unclasped as they dig into the candy that Brittany had bought. Brittany looks around at the other cars, taking notice of the few that have fogged up window. She can only imagine what is going on inside the cabins of those trucks and wonders if it's going to happen in the one she is sitting in. She'd give anything for Santana to lean over and press a sweet tasting kiss to her lips.

Music comes on and the two characters start talking. Brittany's focus is brought back to the screen instantly. She hears Santana take in a deep breath and blow it out slowly and quietly, it makes her wonder if she is thinking the same thing. Brittany side eyes her and spots her move her arm from between them, wipe her hand on her skirt roughly and then crack her knuckles. She shakes her head figuring that maybe Santana was just itching to see this movie over already.

It isn't until she feels more movement beside her that she kind of understands the strange fidgety motions Santana was doing. She feels the tub of popcorn being pulled from her hand and turns to see Santana put it between her and the passenger side door, out of the way, no more barriers. Brittany looks away from the window and to Santana's eyes that she can see sparkle from the light on the screen. Santana smirks and leans close to Brittany so that her mouth is just grazing her earlobe and lacing their fingers together again.

"I forgot how much I loved this movie." Santana whispers into Brittany's ear, her lips grazing her cheek a little bit longer than necessary.

Brittany turns her head before Santana can lean all the way back and leans in just in time to catch her lips. Santana is instantly drawn in and hums into the kiss. Brittany lifts her left hand to Santana's cheek, a move to deepen the kiss only Santana covers it and pulls back. Her eyes open and are desperately searching beautiful browns. She can see there is uncertainty in them.

"Nobody is watchin' us." Brittany assures her, giving a quick look out her side of the truck to the few other cars and trucks around them. "They're watchin' Baby and Johnny or they're…" She shifts closer and grabs Santana's hand. "Or they're doin'..." Santana looks out the passenger side window and notices that most of the trucks and cars around them have fogged up windows or filled with people actually watching the movie. She turns back to Brittany and looks down at the small space between them as she caresses the hand on her cheek. "Let's watch the movie. I just wanna be here with you." Brittany shrugs and leans her forehead to Santana's.

"I know." Santana nods, their foreheads rubbing against each other as she does so. "I just…" She pulls back, her hand still covering Brittany's. "I _really_ like you, and… I don't wanna mess any of this up." Santana admits in a quiet voice. Brittany's smile fades and she dips her head to catch Santana's eye.

"Sweetie," She coos and the term makes Santana smile. "There ain't nothin' you could do to mess anythin' up." She presses a firm kiss to Santana's forehead.

"It's… I mean the last thing you need is for someone to open their big mouths and tell your mother before you're ready." Santana explains.

"Santana," She shakes her head and smiles. "I wasn't suggestin' that we get naked and fog up the windows. I mean, that would be super-hot and I wouldn't be opposed to it. But, we're on a date and I wanted to kiss you. All that… I'm not thinkin' about that stuff. Right now, all I care about is if you're havin' a good time with me." Santana can tell by the twinkle in Brittany's eyes that she is being sincere and it melts her heart. "So, are you havin' a good time?" Brittany asks, finally letting her hand falls from Santana's cheek and brings it to her lap.

"I am." Santana smiles.

When it becomes apparent that they are both on the same page, they shift their focus back to the movie, holding hands and reciting almost every line. They go through some, nearly most, of the candy that Brittany had brought back and finished up the popcorn before the movie was even halfway through. Santana cringed, just as she warned Brittany she would, when She's like the Wind came over the radio.

It was hard to explain her dislike for the song, but Brittany couldn't really fight it as she too was not a huge fan of the track either. They laughed, surprised that not every Dirty Dancing fan hates that Patrick Swayze song as much as them. Santana offers the straw to their shared soda to Brittany after she sips from it and Brittany accepts almost instantly. She wasn't even thirsty, she just wanted Santana's lips on hers.

The girls don't stick around when the credits come up and decide to head back home, taking the long way to extend their date a little more. They continue to quote the movie they know by heart and imagine up a sequel where Penny is the lead because other than Patrick Swayze himself, she was the best dancer in the movie. Brittany tells Santana that Dirty Dancing was a big reason she got interested in dancing. Of course she was so little when she first saw it so to her younger self, it was strictly a dancing movie and not a romantic movie. Before they know it, Brittany's truck is in the Lopez driveway and they are sitting quietly, still holding hands.

"Don't fight me on this." Brittany says with a squeeze of her hand and opens her driver's side door. She slips out of the truck and tugs on Santana's hand for her to follow. "Come on, I won't bite." She waves for her to slide down the bench seat and come out through the driver's side. Brittany walks Santana up to her door, their hands casually swinging between them as they make their way up the porch.

"I had a great time tonight." Santana says when they finally reach the door. "You didn't have to walk me to the door." She laughs and looks down at their hands.

"Comes with the territory of a date." Brittany explains with a wink. "As do other things." She adds as an afterthought.

"Oh?" Santana tilts her head.

"Typically, the night comes to a close with a kiss."

"Right. I've read about that part." Santana nods and shivers, but not from the cold. "Too bad it's a school night." She comments. "I'd ask you in, but my roommate is overbearing." She laughs.

"Yeah. School." Brittany smirks and looks to the front door. "Well, I should get goin'." She motions towards the direction of her house or her truck, she's not really sure. Santana steps that little bit closer until there is no longer any room between them. Brittany looks down, only a few inches, just enough so that she can send a quick glance towards Santana's mouth.

"Thank you for a lovely evening Miss Pierce." Santana whispers, leaning her chin up ever so slightly. Brittany grins, lowering her chin a bit.

"Thank you Miss Lopez, for goin' out with me." Brittany says in the same soft voice.

Then just like that, their lips finally meet. It's gentle and sweet and a little bit longer than a quick peck. Their mouths open enough for their tongues to say 'hello'. It lasts about thirty seconds and when they pull apart they are grinning widely back at one another.

"Goodnight." Santana breathes out.

"Goodnight." Brittany says and finally forces herself to move from the Lopez porch, thus pulling her hand from Santana's.

After watching Brittany's truck pull out of the driveway, Santana makes her way inside the house to find her Aunt Linda sitting in the living room watching some awful reality television. She tries to swiftly make her way down to her room but is stopped by the sound of her aunt's voice.

"Santana." Linda calls out, promptly shutting the television off and is suddenly in the hallway. "How was it?"

"Good. I mean, it was Dirty Dancing. I've seen if before, so…" Santana shrugs and goes to turn the other way.

"I meant…" Linda inches her way further into the hallway and Santana eyes her up as she tugs onto the strap of her purse. "How was your date?" Santana's brow furrows and her jaw drops.

"How'd you…?"

"How'd I know? Please. I'd have to be blind not to know that you and Brittany have been actin' like two little lovebirds. Besides, I saw you two kissing out in her truck a few weeks ago." Aunt Linda waves her hand and turns to head into the kitchen to look at the time on the stove. "Well, I'm off to bed. Goodnight." She pats Santana's shoulder and walks her way down the hall, makes a left into her bedroom and closes the door.

Santana is stunned to say the least, but more than that she's elated. She never dreamed she'd have someone who would be interested in how her night out with a girl went, at least not in her family. It's hard for her not to smile at Aunt Linda's asking her how her date with Brittany went. It went fairly well, she thought, but the coming home and having her aunt waiting up for her and wondering about her evening made it even better.

* * *

><p>Walking into school on Monday morning, to Santana, feels like cupid threw up everywhere. There are purple, pink and red streamers hung from the ceilings, corner to corner and locker to locker. Paper hearts cut out from construction paper and banners are posted all over the walls demanding people to pick their Valentine. She didn't forget about Valentine's Day, she's just never had a reason to celebrate it. Also, she doesn't believe in a day that promotes overpriced chocolates, flowers and ugly jewelry.<p>

Brittany is a few feet behind her, having got caught up in a conversation with the Spirit Squad captain about the decorations. She's sort of thankful for someone to distract Brittany from the fact.

"_Great_." Santana mutters to herself as she bypasses a sophomore couple who are basically groping each other against the lockers across from hers.

"Okay, so," Brittany comes up to her out of nowhere, Santana smirks thinking that she was finally able to pry that Spirit Squad nerd away from her. "I know we didn't really discuss it, but, I was thinkin' that after school we could drive to Dalton. We can go to the museum and then have a picnic right outside." Brittany suggests quietly and leans her back to Santana's locker.

"Don't you have cheer practice?" Santana asks, changing the subject as she digs into her bag for her books.

"Coach Sue always goes on vacation the week of Valentine's Day." Brittany says with a shrug. "I think she has a secret rendezvous with someone, everyone else thinks it's 'cause she hates this holiday."

"Well, I'm workin', so…" Santana turns the dial on her locker and Brittany shifts off of the door so that she can open it.

"Right." Brittany's chin lowers to her chest and she looks down at her cheer shoes. "I'm sure Holly's will be super busy." She smiles over at Santana who nods and grabs the books she needs for this morning. "You'll make good money."

"That's the plan." Santana winks, but takes notice to the crestfallen look on Brittany's face.

"I should have brought it up earlier." Brittany shakes her head at herself, but still manages to put on a smile for Santana. "I better get to my locker before the warning bell. See ya later." She pushes herself from the lockers and lets her fingers graze Santana's arm as she walks by.

"Happy Valentine's Day." Quinn comes from the other side of Santana and holds out her hand that has a few of those candy hearts with the words on them. Santana huffs, shuts her locker and grabs to heart candies. "Oh, so you love this holiday as much as I do." She laughs as they make their way down the hall to first period.

"It's not a holiday." Santana points out.

"Who peed in your Cheerios?"

"I've never actually celebrated Valentine's Day, 'cause I never really had a…"

"Girlfriend." Quinn adds and gets a look.

"_Someone_ I wanted to share a fake special day with. And Brittany was just talkin' about going to Dalton and a picnic and all this cute stuff, lookin' at me with those eyes but I have work and I think she's upset." Santana rambles.

"I see. So, what I'm hearin' is that you forgot it was Valentine's Day and now Brittany is a sad panda." Quinn summarizes and Santana nods. "Way to go cupid."

"What am I supposed to do then?" Santana wonders, adjusting the strap of her purse on her shoulder and shifts the books in her arms. "It's not like I can do much of anything. We go to school at Anti-Homo High. If I show up with a bouquet of flowers, a box of chocolates and a 'be mine' teddy bear in her study hall, can you imagine how harassed she'll get?" She groans. They walk into the classroom and towards the back where their seats are.

"She planned a Valentine's Day date, I don't think she cares much about how people will react." Quinn points out.

"It's just another stupid day." Santana sighs as she slips into her desk chair.

"So, then stop stressin'." Quinn tells her just before the teacher starts her lecture without even greeting the class.

The entire day Santana watches couples exchange gifts, boyfriends surprising their girlfriends with flowers and candies and stupid fluffy stuffed animals. She'd want to throw up everywhere but instead she feels awful for not even thinking that Brittany would want to share this 'special' day with her in the way everyone else is sharing it. During sixth period she rolls her eyes when Mike Chang comes walking in with a heart shaped box of chocolates and a heart shaped balloon.

Santana could not be more excited to get out of school at the bell. She rushes to her locker like it's the first day of summer vacation, only to realize that she has to wait for Brittany anyway. After gathering her books and other belongings she leans against her locker until Brittany gets there. The kids across from her locker are back to making out in a disgusting fashion, but in a weird way, she's kind of jealous.

Luckily Brittany doesn't take long to get to her locker. It makes Santana wonder if Brittany too had some trouble getting through the entire school day without having her special someone do something special for her. All the way to the front doors of the school, Santana thinks of things that she could possibly say to make up for the fact that she isn't exactly the best at showing her feelings. But rather than say something to fix it, or even to break the silence between them as they walk through the halls, she keeps quiet.

When they walk out of school they are both surprised to find that the bed of Brittany's truck is decorated with a big white teddy bear, a bouquet of flowers and one of those oversized chocolate heart boxes. Brittany stares at it curiously while Santana watches on, pained. She knows who put those there and it pisses her off. The closer they get the more Valentine's Day paraphernalia they pick up on and see that attached to the teddy bear is a pink envelope with Brittany's name written on it in chicken scratch.

It's a cheesy Valentine's Day card and it's signed by none other than Finn Hudson. Brittany sighs and looks around to find the boy who can't seem to get a clue, but, he's nowhere to be found. Santana silently makes her way into the truck wishing she hadn't accepted Brittany's offer to drive her to work. She waits for Brittany who wrestles with the giant teddy bear in the bed of the truck trying to get it to lie flat down.

As they drive down Charles, Brittany catches a few of the kids in her school that are well known for smoking pot under the bleachers. Santana had admitted to her that she had a 'moment of weakness' and smoked with some kid with red hair and a dirty hat. She glances over at Santana who is rummaging through her purse in search of something.

"I've been curious." Brittany starts and Santana gives her a quick look before she turns her attention back to her purse that she's been digging through. "You've told me a bunch of stories 'bout goin' out and causin' chaos and whatever with that kid."

"Puck." Santana reminds her of the boy's name from back home that she'd spent most of her adolescence with. Brittany nods and sucks in her lips as she adjusts her grip on the steering wheel.

"Yeah." Brittany drawls out and tucks some hair that fell from her ponytail behind her ear then taps the steering wheel with her fingertips. "Do you miss it?" She asks with an innocent tone and tilts her head.

"Miss what?"

"Drugs, chaos… Puck." Santana's head jerks back and up away from the inside of her bag and she sends Brittany a questioning stare.

"What?" Santana laughs and sits up straight, leans her forearm onto the rest on the passenger side door. Brittany shrugs and slides her hands down the steering wheel.

"All your stories from Boston start and end with you bein' 'totally wasted' or 'wicked fucked up'…" Santana smirks as Brittany imitates her accent.

"Why Miss Brittany Pierce, do you kiss your mother with that mouth?" Santana jokes and raises an eyebrow. Brittany playfully rolls her eyes and grins.

"Come on." Brittany says and gives Santana a pointed look to let her know that this cute act of deflection is not going to work with her. Santana closes the refrigerator door and sighs.

"It's not like I was an addict." She explains as she crosses her arms over her chest and leans against the counter so she is facing Brittany. "It was purely recreational."

"So, you didn't do it a lot then?" Brittany wonders and Santana's lips twists as she contemplates what 'a lot' means to other people.

"I _did_." She admits quietly and runs her fingers through her hair. "But, it's not like I wake up itchin' for it." She quickly adds and brings her fingers to her lips giving them a few light taps as she watches Brittany take in her words. "I think that when I did those things, it was 'cause I was tryna make myself feel better." She begins to explain. "In Boston, every day was the same. My mom's a drunk, school's a bore, my dad's a stranger and…" She looks down at the way her fingers twist the knob on the silverware drawer. "It's easy to forget about all that stuff when there's no thinkin' goin' on. Drinkin' made it numb and the pills made me smile in spite of it." Her eyes flicker up to meet Brittany's that are fixed on her.

"And now?" Brittany challenges because they both know that, although in another state miles away from home, Santana's problems are still very much present.

Santana lifts her head, uncrosses her arms and nibbles on her bottom lip. For a moment she glances to passenger side window because Brittany's blue eyes can be so intrusive. It doesn't last long and soon enough she's searching for those eyes that seek out answers that she is too scared to admit to.

"I have you." Santana tells her softly and shrugs a shoulder. "Somehow you make me say things that sound like something out of a Lifetime movie." Santana says and shakes her head as if the movement will cool her burning cheeks.

"I don't make you say anythin'." Brittany replies, a sweet smile on her lips.

"And then you say things like that." Santana counters.

"'Cause you say things." Brittany points out. "You don't give yourself enough credit." She adds and Santana tilts her head with a confused smile. "You can be very cute all on your own." She winks before pulling her truck to the curb outside of Holly's Daze. "Wow, looks busy already." Santana glances over at the café and notices that there is already a decent crowd for a Tuesday.

"Hey," Santana says when Brittany cuts the engine. "My aunt is goin' out of town Friday night." She's looking down at her hands that are in her lap, nervously twiddling her fingers. "I was thinkin', well, I mean if you wanna…" Santana looks up from her hands and to Brittany who is already looking back at her with a smile on her lips.

"Santana," Brittany shuffles on the bench seat closer to Santana and drapes her arm over her shoulders. "You tryna ask me out on a date?" Santana grins and shrugs her shoulders, letting herself lean into Brittany's warm body.

"Maybe."

"I'd love to."

"I didn't even ask."

"You don't have to."

"Well, I'm workin' that night at the café and I know you have to be at the shop." Santana points out.

"I'll cut out early and meet you here." Brittany assures her with a smile.

"Cool." Santana nods, turning her gaze to her bag that's in her lap.

"Cool." Brittany repeats.

* * *

><p>Friday cannot come fast enough, but when it does, Brittany is fidgety all day wondering what Santana has in store for their date. Santana told her that Miss Linda was going away for the night and she assumes that the date is set for that night with the intention of ending back at Santana's. Well, at least she sort of hopes that's where it ends. They haven't had sex since their first time by the lake. Of course, they almost did last week on top of the Thunderbird and she most certainly wishes that she never stopped it from happening. But at the same time, she's happy to wait for their next time to be somewhere a little more intimate than on a towel in the woods.<p>

Yet, as that thought crosses her mind, that day was so very intimate. Santana was so gentle with her and careful with every single one of her touches. She only hopes to reciprocate every feeling that Santana made her feel that day by the lake. She imagines ways to make her squirm and moan and beg for more.

It's pretty rough getting through the morning with all of these thoughts running through Brittany's mind. She manages to push them aside and focus on her work for at least half of a class but when lunch time comes and she's sitting across from Santana she becomes distracted. Her top is cut low and her shirt seems extra short today that it is becoming increasingly difficult for Brittany to concentrate on anything but Santana's chest among other things.

After school Brittany drives Santana home before heading to the garage. Apparently Miss Linda has a few rules she has to set for Santana before she leaves her home alone for the first time since she got to Knox. She herself goes home to change into her work clothes and packs a pair of jeans and a nice top for their date later just in case she doesn't have time to stop home first.

Usually, for Brittany, spending time at Pierce Parts and Tires working on cars helps clear her mind. Not today. Today is spent counting the seconds, minutes and hours until she hops in her truck and goes to Holly's Daze. Thankfully Mr. Fabray has an engine that needs to be rebuilt for one of the old trains for some motor show over in Dalton and asks for her to put some time into it with Ken.

Ken might not be the brightest guy in the world but the man doesn't shut up. So while Brittany is working on her part of the engine in silence, Ken is talking her ear off about his ex-fiancé as he works on his part. Even though she can't quite follow the way he tells stories, sometimes falling off because he's talking to his wrench or screwdriver, she's happy that he is making her think of something other than Santana naked.

It's already after ten by the time they decide to call it a night. Ken tells her to go ahead and get going, that he'll clean up and she should enjoy her weekend. She thanks him and heads into the employee bathroom to wash her face and hands figuring she will change when she gets to Holly's. It only takes about ten minutes to get to Holly's Daze from the shop and the quicker she gets to see Santana the better.

When she pulls up to the café she notices the blinds on both giant windows are closed. She curiously looks around the store front, trying to see if there's still a light on inside or if perhaps Santana got tired of waiting for her. She looks down at her phone to see if there's a text message from Santana she may have missed telling her that they should meet at home, but there isn't.

Assuming they are still on to meet here, she hops out of her truck and heads towards the door. When she opens it and steps in, Brittany comes to find one of the tables is set for two with a candle lit in the center. Her brow furrows and she looks around, wondering if she has accidentally come in and is crashing a special date that Holly has set up. She is taken out of her musings when music starts playing out of the jukebox. She looks over in that direction to find Santana standing there, leaning against the music player.

"What…" Brittany looks to the table then back at Santana. "What's goin' on?" She asks as she nervously tugs on the collar of her shirt and then twists the ring on her middle finger.

"I'm sorry." Santana apologizes, steps away from the jukebox and smoothes her hands down the front of her skirt. "I was changin' out of my work clothes and…" She tucks some hair behind her ear.

"What is all this?" Brittany asks again, a small smile plays on her lips and she motions towards the table set for two. Everything she had been thinking about today suddenly flies out the window and she's at a loss for words. Santana half grins, locks her hands together in front of herself and takes a few more steps towards Brittany.

"I've never had an actual Valentine." Santana explains. "I've never had someone I cared about enough to celebrate the fake holiday."

"It's not fake."

"Says you, Hallmark and Hershey." They laugh. "I know it's a little late. Both in that it was a few days ago and that it's really late right now. But…" She motions towards the table.

"Oh, I…" Brittany frowns, sincerely wishing she hadn't agreed to order pizza when Ken suggested it. "I already ate." Santana nods and grabs Brittany's hand to lead her to the table.

"I figured as much." Santana grins.

"So, then what are we gonna do?"

"We could… sit and talk?" Santana offers.

"I wish you would've at least told me to dress up when you called." Brittany says as she tugs at the middle of her shirt.

"Why?" Santana asks with a frown.

"'Cause I look like a mess and you look," She makes a motion towards Santana. "You look like _that_." Santana smirks and giggles.

"I'm gonna take that as a compliment." Santana jokes and Brittany sighs at her loss for adjectives. "Besides," Santana shrugs. "It doesn't matter much to me what you're wearing. You always look beautiful to me." Brittany tilts her head to the side and studies Santana for a moment to find the joke, only it's not there. "Whether you're in your church dress, your nifty jumpsuit at the garage, your oh so edible cheer uniform or," She tugs at the collar of Brittany's shirt. "Jeans and a t-shirt." Brittany blushes and looks away for a moment, feeling over heated at the comments and the proximity.

"At least I brought clothes to change into." Brittany says and pats her duffel bag. Santana continues to smile through a nod and steps aside so that Brittany can go and use the restroom to get changed.

Fifteen minutes later, the jukebox falls silent and Brittany emerges from the bathroom in a pair of skinny jeans, her usual cowboy boots and a tight fitting tank top accentuating all the right curves. Santana keeps a careful eye on her as she makes her way from the bathroom to the table she set up just for the two of them.

"What's your favorite holiday then?" Brittany asks.

"Hmmm?" Santana hums out, being taken out of her Brittany staring.

"I'm just curious if you have any other holidays you consider fake. What's your favorite one?" Brittany wonders.

"That's easy, my birthday." Santana replies with a grin.

"Oh, so Valentine's Day isn't a _real_ holiday, but, your birthday is?" Brittany asks with a giggle. "Is it celebrated around the world?"

"It should be." Santana shrugs, smirk on her lips. "I mean, birthdays are magical. There's presents and cake. Who doesn't love cakes? And there's candles. _Very_ celebratory. People sing and there're candles to make wishes on." Santana explains.

"_So_, you're sayin' if I sing to you, give you a present and there's a candle it today might constitute as a holiday?"

"Britt…"

"Accordin' to you, if there're treats, song and a candle it's a holiday." Brittany points out with a quirked eyebrow. "So," She gets up and looks around. "All I need is some music." Brittany gets up and moves over to the jukebox, pushes some buttons until some music comes pouring from the speakers. "Check." She grins over at Santana. "And, hmmm, treats." She heads over this time to the back where she knows that Holly keeps some candy. "Check." She announces with the candy in hand. "And all we need now is a wish." She sits down and holds out a book of matches she snagged from Holly's desk when she was grabbing the candy. "I know it's no candle, but…" She mumbles as she strikes a match and lights it up. "It'll do." She beams at Santana who is staring back at her in amazement. "Go ahead, before my fingers catch fire."

Brittany laughs when Santana finally snaps out of it and smiles at her and the match. Santana blows out the small fire and looks at Brittany through the smoke.

"What'd you wish?"

"I wished you'd hold my hand." Santana admits in a tiny voice. Brittany grins and playfully rolls her eyes. Carefully, she moves her hand across the table until she grasps Santana's hand. "So, I was wondering," Santana clears her throat as she laces their fingers and rubs her thumb across the back of Brittany's hand. "How's the view of Knox at the Pierce barn at night?" Brittany smiles and tilts her head. "I was thinkin' how nice Dalton looked from high up and your dad's barn is sort of on a hill that overlooks Knox. I bet it's amazin' at night." Brittany nods. It's not every day that Santana is this charming and sweet and utterly adorable. But, when she is, Brittany drinks it up because it's so delicious.

"Umm, yeah. It's pretty nice at night." Brittany tells her and Santana grins. "There're no lights up there, so, the sky is incredible. You think the stars are bright on the South Service Road, you haven't seen nothin'." Santana breathes out a small laugh that only makes her smile shine more.

"I think my aunt is out with a guy." Santana comments after an inner battle on what to say next. Maybe talking about Aunt Linda's love life is not the best topic of conversation, but, it's _something_ which is way better than Santana just sitting in silence staring at how beautiful Brittany is. Not that Santana would mind doing that. She could do that all night.

"Oh?" Brittany questions curiously.

"Yeah, she had a bag packed and she let me take her truck." She says with a nod towards the door. Brittany hadn't even noticed Miss Linda's truck parked outside. She had other things on her mind. "She didn't even tell me to call her if I needed anything. I guess it was kinda implied when she said 'don't do somethin' stupid while I'm gone'." They laugh and shake their heads, both wondering if perhaps Linda Lopez has finally gotten her second shot at love.

"That'd be nice for her." Brittany lets out, her eyes on their clasped hands sitting in the middle of the table. "I mean, it's been so long since…" Her voice trails off and Santana nods in understanding.

"It's gotta be hard though. I mean, people think they're never gonna find it once." Santana muses out loud and shrugs, letting her eyes bore into blues that lift to meet hers.

"Love?" Brittany questions, making sure they are on the same page. Santana nods and whether it's intended or not, she squeezes Brittany's hand a little bit tighter.

"I mean, it could just be sex." Santana says. "Aunt Linda is definitely entitled to get her mack on."

"Sure, it could be." Brittany reasons. "But, I think Miss Linda's a person who's in it for more than just the physical."

"What's wrong with just the physical?" Santana asks, leaning forward and rests her elbow to the table, setting her chin in her hand.

"Nothin'. But, I think that with feeling's it's better." Brittany clarifies what she means.

They sit there for a few more minutes, maybe it's one or even less but no one's counting, smiling at one another. Brittany's words dancing around the café, sinking into Santana's head and settling in her heart. She's only known sex as sex. She always thought that sex was better without eye contact. But, Quinn hit the nail on the head, Brittany makes everything different.

"What do ya say we get outta here and make some more of those memories?" Santana asks after a little more staring into each other's eyes. Brittany's eyes sparkle and she nods. "Alright, but I'm drivin'."

"But you don't know how to get anywhere around here." Brittany reminds her as they get up from the table. Santana laughs on her way to shut the kitchen lights off as well as the dining room.

"You may be right about that, but I have you, my own personal GPS." Santana tells her while grabbing her hand once again to lead them out the front door of Holly's and out to her aunt's truck. "Plus, I'm the one who asked you out on this date so I'm sort of in charge."

When they get into Aunt Linda's truck it starts to rain. Santana huffs at how Mother Nature might ruin her perfect date night. Brittany points out that sometimes this Texas rain lasts twenty minutes and sometimes they can even drive their way out of it, avoiding it completely. With that hope, Santana asks if they can go check out that view at the Pierce barn.

Santana tugs on Brittany's hand for her to slide closer to her on the bench seat of the truck. She turns right when Brittany says to, then left and then she follows the road straight as instructed. It's dark, the only light coming from the headlights of the truck illuminating only twenty feet in front of them. Apparently Brittany was right about the rain seeing as they have driven away from it completely.

"Here." Brittany says pointing towards the spot she wants Santana to pull up to. She does as directed bringing her aunt's truck right up to the edge of the hill. "Kill the lights." She tells her with a soft voice. Santana throws the truck into park, shuts the engine off and shits the lights off. She looks over to her right when she hears the passenger door open. "Come on." Brittany motions for Santana to follow. The girls meet at the front of the truck, Santana's jaw drops at the sight. "Amazing right?" She whispers, crossing her arms around herself not even needing to turn around to know Santana's nodding in agreement.

"Wow." Santana finally lets out, moving to lean on the front of the truck. "It's gorgeous." Brittany turns around in time to catch Santana staring at her and both girls blush through a grin and look away.

Santana watches carefully as Brittany looks down at her feet shuffling against the dirt, running her hands up and down her own arms. Brittany takes a deep, unsteady breath before she steps in front of Santana, leaning her back into her front. Santana's breath gets caught in her chest and her arms lift from her sides, uncertain of where to put them. She swallows hard, her eyes gazing over the blonde's bare back thanks to her tank top.

Brittany uncrosses her arms and tentatively reaches for Santana's hands, when she finds them she brings them to her waist. Letting out a long sigh, she moves her hands from Santana's and up to her forearms feeling the goose bumps beneath her fingertips. Santana leans in, moves her head forward and closes her eyes as she feels Brittany's heart beat rapidly against her body. Brittany turns her head slightly and her eyes flutter closed when Santana's breath hits her cheek.

"Santana." Brittany whispers, tilts her head to the side exposing her neck and gulps at the feeling of Santana's fingers as they squeeze her hips.

"Hmm?" Santana hums out, nudging her nose against the skin at Brittany's neck, letting her lips graze just below her ear which elicits a gasp from the girl in her arms.

"I can't stop thinkin' about that day at the lake." Brittany admits into the silent night air. Santana continues to ghost her lips against new skin when suddenly Brittany turns around in her arms, her blue eyes locking into hers. "I can't stop thinkin' about you. Like _that_." She shakes her head, slowly brings her hand up to cup Santana's cheek and says, "And really, I don't want to stop." Brown eyes flicker from blue eyes to lips, a pink tongue pokes out to moisten them. Those intoxicating blue eyes scan Santana's entire face, trying to gauge her reaction.

"Then don't." Santana tells her, keeping eye contact. "Because, I can't stop either and…" Her eyes flicker back and forth, not sure which beautiful blue orb to give the most attention to. "You're so beautiful and awesome and I…"

"Shut up, Santana." Brittany cuts her off. "Just… shut up and _kiss me_." For someone who usually disregards any form of instruction, Santana wastes no time in complying with Brittany's demand.

Her hands squeeze and pull Brittany's hips against her own as she tilts her head to capture those lips. It's a heated kiss, frantic and needy, but also soft and gentle at the same time. A small whine escapes Brittany's mouth which spurs Santana on to intensify the kiss. Hands find their way into dark locks of hair, a desperate attempt to pull Santana deeper. Lips part and tongues dance. Santana's hands move slowly from Brittany's hips to the small of her back, letting the other hand slide up to the space between her shoulder blades.

"Is this okay?" Santana asks between kisses as she pushes off of the truck causing Brittany to stumble back slightly. Brittany pulls back momentarily to nod before rushing back in for more kisses.

They are fighting for more of each other, lifting shirts and grabbing at skin. Feet shuffle against the dirt as they push and pull at each other. Santana finally gets Brittany's back up against the truck and trails kisses down her neck, moving the strap of her tank top to fall down her shoulder, kissing her there. Brittany's hands get lost in Santana's hair, pulling the girl closer against her skin and lifts her leg up to rub against Santana's.

It seems that only a few minutes ago they had driven through the rain but it has found them. The sky opens up and it begins to pour on them, but, neither girl gives a reaction to Mother Nature's sudden intrusion. Brittany moans when Santana sucks on her earlobe and pulls her back by her hair, only to assault her lips with her own.

Their clothes are sopping wet, their hair drenched and stuck to their skin. Brittany reaches behind her to open the driver's side door of the truck, blindly searching for the handle. She yanks it open which causes Santana to stumble backwards but keeps their lips pressed together best she can. Santana grips at the sides of Brittany's soaking wet tank top, balls it up into her fists, desperate to keep their bodies close. The fabric only stretches when the blonde lifts herself up into the driver's seat of the truck.

"Get in here." Brittany demands breathlessly. This time it's her who is reaching out and fisting Santana's shirt in her hand to pull her into the truck with her. Brittany giggles as Santana hoists herself up onto the step and practically falls onto her.

Their lips find each other instantly and the force of Santana's body falling forward pushes Brittany's back to the leather seat. Santana shifts her body to fit into Brittany's as it did that day by the lake, keeping her hand by Brittany's head so she doesn't hit it on the passenger side door as she slides back against the front seat. Santana sits up, only briefly, to turn around and close the door to stop the rain from hitting their legs.

Brittany's hands run up and under her shirt, slipping across her skin that is wet from the rain which is completely going through her t-shirt. Santana's stomach muscles quiver and she smiles at the feeling as she lowers herself back down on top of the blonde. She licks Brittany's lips before taking the bottom between her teeth and pulls on it gently garnering a small moan to creep up from the back of the Brittany's throat.

Her hand glides down the side of Brittany's stomach and moves to the front, trailing her fingers right where the top of her jeans start and she plays with the button that is a small inconvenience. Hips from underneath her cant up, seeking some sort of friction and she grinds down to oblige the unspoken request.

"_Uh_." Brittany moans something high pitched and tries to tug Santana's shirt up to expose her flesh and its then that she notices that the girl on top of her is not wearing a bra.

"Mmm." Santana hums out onto Brittany's lips, greedily kissing her while her fingers still work at the button fly of these pesky jeans. Frustration kicking in she grunts and pulls from the kiss to look down at the problem in her hand, leans up and brings her other hand down to aide in the process of unbuttoning it.

"Wait." Brittany grabs her hands, stilling them and Santana looks down at her. "I…" She looks away towards the dashboard, not for anything really. It's simply a place to look while she gathers her thoughts. "Take me home… _with you_." She whispers, turns her head and stares into Santana's eyes. She studies Brittany's face, her eyes and her lips and the way her chest is moving up and down as she breathes.

"Are you sure?" Santana asks.

In movies, they never show these in between moments; the moments where it gets extremely awkward and silent because the characters can't think of anything to do or say. One minute they are on screen getting all hot and heavy then in the next scene they're in bed getting it on. They never show the quiet drive back to the apartment or house or dorm room. They don't unveil how torturously uncomfortable it is to all of a sudden have to put a hold on the ache between one's legs.

But, that's what this moment is; a deleted scene. If this was a movie, it's the part where the lovers finally find the same page and want to consummate said page. Only they want to 'do it' somewhere more special than on the sticky leather seats of their Aunt's truck. So, instead of ripping one another's clothes off right then and there when the time arose, they are sitting in the truck. The radio is off and the only sound besides their labored breathing returning to normal is the squeak of the windshield wipers.

"I can fix that." Brittany comments after they finally turn onto the South Service Road.

"Cool." Santana says softly, with a nod and a small smile, finding herself genuinely happy that someone is finally going to fix these stupid windshield wipers.

It feels like it takes forever but eventually Santana is pulling the truck into the driveway, her heart nearly pounding out of her chest at this point. They run up to the porch hand in hand and Santana fumbles with the house keys trying to get it open as quickly as possible. Once inside, with the door shut and locked they stand there with their clothes dripping water to the ground beneath them, their hair spilling more rain onto their skin. Santana throws the keys onto the table, grabs Brittany's other hand and walks backwards down the hall, leading the both of them towards her bedroom.

She closes her bedroom door behind them and brings them over to stand beside her bed. Her hands come up and move blonde hair off of Brittany's shoulders until it falls onto her back then lets her fingers trail down her arms only stopping when she comes to the hem of her shirt. Then, ever so slowly she begins to lift Brittany's shirt up, peeling it from her body until it hits the floor with a thud. She smoothes out the blonde hair that got messed up from the rain and the shirt being pulled over her head and she leans in to press a soft kiss onto Brittany's lips.

Santana steps forward, rests her forehead against Brittany's and watches her own hand come up to the blonde's bra strap carefully sliding it down. Her lips come to press against the skin on her shoulder, then to the crook of her neck, her jaw line and then finally the corner of her mouth. Then Santana does the same to the other side on the other shoulder before she walks around Brittany, stops behind her and unclasps her bra.

She slips her hands from behind around to the front and underneath the bra and cups Brittany's breast causing her to gasp, throwing her head back which lands on Santana's shoulder. Santana kisses her neck where it's exposed from leaning back and she continues to squeeze and caress Brittany's perfectly round breasts. Her lips move from the side of her neck to the back of her shoulder then to the spot between her shoulder blades and she moves blonde hair to the side to kiss the rest of her back. Eventually the bra is completely discarded, falling from Brittany's arms to the ground.

Santana's kisses move lower and to the sides, kissing at Brittany's ribs, then down to her hips and the small of her back until she is kissing her way back up again. She makes sure she takes her time on every piece of skin she can put her lips to. She steps back and brings her hands down to the bottom of her own shirt and lifts it over her head, tossing it to the other side of the room without a care and presses the front of her body against Brittany's back.

"_Oh_." Brittany breathes out, reaching down to grab Santana's hands that are splayed across her stomach. She turns around, wanting to look at the girl behind her and to feel all of her all over her. Her eyes rake over Santana's chest eventually falling onto her face pulling her in by her neck for a kiss. "Don't move." She whispers into her mouth and Santana can only nod.

She gulps when she feels Brittany's lips move across her skin, down her neck and lick over her collarbone. Her hands rest on Brittany's shoulders as she kisses her way further down the front of her body until she's on her knees. Brittany looks up momentarily to meet dark brown eyes and hooks her fingers into the top of Santana's black lace thong.

"You…" Santana's voice cracks and she closes her mouth to moisten it up. "You don't have to do…"

"I want to." Brittany says and all Santana can seem to do is stare at the girl as she gently pulls her thong down to her ankles and holds her hand for Santana to take as she steps out of it. Brittany's eyes flicker from Santana's eyes and to the spot between her legs, nervously licking her lips as she does so.

Tentatively, Brittany slides her hands up Santana's legs, reaching around and grazes her ass in the process before resting on her hips. She leans in and kisses her thigh, then her hip bone and then at her waist just below her belly button.

"Sit down and lie back." Brittany tells her, nudging her backwards to the bed by pressing her hands against Santana's hips. She nods and follows direction taking a seat at the edge of her bed and leans back on her elbows.

Brittany shuffles against the wood floor to move closer to Santana and brings her hands to the inside of her thighs and spreads her legs a little wider. Her lips come to the inside of her thigh peppering the area with soft wet kisses. She slowly moves upwards with her kissing and locks eyes with Santana as she turns her face towards her destination. Santana gasps when she feels breath hits her _there_. With a small smile Brittany places a kiss right where Santana needs her most making her groan out anxiously.

Brittany pulls back, looking down as though wondering where to start before she moves back in and licks her way from the opening to Santana's clit causing the girl on the bed to jerk her legs and hips. The taste doesn't bother her like she feared it would, in fact, Brittany has just decided that she quite likes the taste of Santana on her lips and tongue and in her mouth. She pushes her face further in and lets her tongue explore some more, dipping it into Santana's center and twirling it around slowly.

"Oh _fuck _yes." Santana's head flies back and her eyes shut tight, her hands bunch up the sheets on her bed into her fists. Brittany's hands come up under Santana's thighs, lifting her up slightly from the bed to give herself a better angle to work with. "Don't stop." Santana begs, her hips moving up and into Brittany's mouth.

Santana can't see it, but Brittany smiles at the positive verbal cues because they let her know that she's doing a good job. She begins to work her tongue faster, in and out making sure to push deep inside of Santana because she seems to really like that. Santana's breathing is heavy, actually she's panting. One of her hands finally releases the bed sheet and finds a place on Brittany's shoulder.

Brittany starts moving her head, getting into a rhythm with her tongue while Santana hums and moans. Legs close in around her ears making the sounds Santana has coming out of her muffled. Every now and again those legs open wider, letting Brittany get a quick listen of the gasps and squeaks that pop from Santana's throat and spill over her lips. When Santana's hips start moving up and down a bit faster and slightly more frantic, Brittany realizes that she has to latch on and follow her body. She even tries to keep her hand at Santana's hip to keep her in position, but that fails when Santana reaches down and grabs her hand, lacing their fingers tightly.

"Oh, _yes_." Santana moans loudly, oblivious to the fact that she is grinding herself into Brittany's face while her free hand gets lost in blonde hair.

The noises coming from Santana are getting louder and lasting longer and range from high pitched to low and husky at every different way she is touched. Brittany isn't sure which sound is hotter, but with her head between Santana's legs she doesn't give it much thought and decides every version of Santana's voice is amazing. Santana's hand grips tighter to Brittany's as her hips jut up and stay there. Brittany continues to lick and suck, basically doing anything she can think to do to drive Santana utterly and completely wild.

"Right there." Santana whimpers. "_Uh_, don't stop baby." She begs as she licks her lips that are so dry from her panting.

Hearing Santana call her baby as she is on the verge orgasm is all the motivation Brittany's tired tongue and jaw needed to hear to cross the finish line. Her hand at Santana's hip holds her still as she adds a little more pressure with her tongue to Santana's clit. It's that tiny amount of pressure that sends Santana over the edge. When she comes, Brittany's name dances off her lips and her body stiffens before it falls limp to the bed. Brittany continues to kiss the intimate spot she has become acquainted with, only softer and slower than before, easing Santana down from her high.

Santana's grip on Britany's hand loosens, but she keeps their fingers laced as her hips continue to roll up and into those sweet kisses. Her breathing, though ragged, slows down and she starts to hum. When she hears the sound Brittany looks up from her spot between those beautiful legs and finds Santana smirking down at her. Her eyes are hooded and her smirk is more relaxed than a typical Santana smirk.

Santana opens her eyes and sees stars dancing around her bedroom ceiling. Her body is fluttering and buzzing and hot but cool. Her breathing is still catching up with itself and she sighs with a smile. She's never had an experience like this.

Her brain is fuzzy, but she's brought back to semi solid ground when she feels Brittany's lips softly ghost over her stomach and her breathe sends goose bumps all down her skin. Her hands grab and tug at the girl still settled between her legs. Santana squeezes Brittany's hand and whispers 'come here' with a nod of her head. She closes her eyes, still reeling from her orgasm and the feeling of Brittany touching her the way she just did.

As requested, Brittany carefully maneuvers herself from between Santana's legs and crawls on top of her. Santana's hands come to the sides of her face and she smiles up at the blue eyed girl hovering over her.

"Did you…?" Brittany's voice is cute and uncertain as she leaves the question unfinished. Santana dips her head bashfully, knowing what Brittany is asking, and she smiles.

"I did." Santana replies softly and her stomach flutters along with the sweet sigh of relief that comes from the girl hovering over her. "Kiss me." Santana says. Brittany blinks once then twice, a small smile on her mouth. Then, ever so slowly, Brittany leans down and presses her lips to Santana's. It's quick, just a peck really and they both giggle.

Santana places her hands on Brittany's cheeks and runs a thumb over her bottom lip. For a moment, she studies her features and curiously aroused expression. She nibbles her own bottom lip before lifting her head from the bed to set another gentle kiss on Brittany's slightly open mouth.

She's never kissed a girl who has just went down on her. It isn't that she minded having the taste of herself in her mouth, it merely seemed to be too intimate of an action. Deepening the kiss, she tastes herself on Brittany's lips and tongue, sending her brain into a spiral. Her stomach plummets and her chest feels constricted, almost too tight to take a breath.

When she pulls back she lets out a shaky sigh. Her eyes open slowly and she finds Brittany staring down at her and she becomes mesmerized. Actually, she feels as though she has just come to realize that perhaps she has been living in this hypnotized like state for some time now. That's the sort of affect Brittany Pierce holds over her. Especially in this moment.

She swallows and it's a bit difficult because her throat is still dry from heaving and panting only moments ago. Her fingers run along Brittany's cheeks and then through her hair, not sure where she wants to begin her journey.

"Brittany?" She says her name in a questioning way. Brittany stares down at her expectantly and curious as to what is about to pour from those delicious lips. "You're so beautiful." She runs her fingers through blonde hair and smiles. "And… I just wanted you to know that, this isn't just sex for me." Brittany can't help but melt inside at how sincere and sweet Santana sounds and how unsure she is of her own words. "I mean, like…" Brittany looks down at the beautiful, naked girl beneath her and watches as her own thoughts run rampant through her mind. Santana runs her fingers down Brittany's shoulder and down to her chest right above her breasts.

Brittany smiles at her because Santana's naked both physically and emotionally and it's stunning to her. It's adorable and heart breaking at the same time because Santana doesn't know how to handle her own feelings. So without letting her freak herself out, Brittany carefully moves from on top of her and tries to pull Santana into a sitting position.

"Can we…" Brittany starts nervously. "Sit up." She tells her and moves from the bed so she is standing. Santana stares, but does as she is told. "I want to try something."

Santana nods and watches as Brittany straddles her making her gasp when arms circle around her neck and long legs spread for her, thighs touching her sides. Santana's eyebrows rise and her eyes widen at the sight of Brittany's center so close to hers. She can practically smell her arousal and she lets out a ragged breath at the way Brittany takes her hand and positions it between her legs.

"Right… here." Brittany whispers, setting Santana's fingers at her entrance.

Brittany slides her other hand up Santana's arm, rests it at her shoulder and lowers herself until she feels those fingers inside of her. She sighs in relief, relaxation and arousal. Her fingers unwrap themselves from around Santana's wrist and she grabs her bicep. Brittany moans when Santana's fingers slowly thrust in and out of her, her hips carefully matching her pace. They both smile at the way their bodies are moving and Brittany puts her hand on Santana's shoulder to balance herself.

Santana can't help it when her eyes move from Brittany's down to those bouncing breasts right in front of her. With every thrust and every time Brittany lowers herself onto Santana's fingers those beautiful, round, perfectly sized breasts catch her attention and she licks her lips. Brittany huffs out a laugh and when Santana looks up at her she grins because she's been watching Santana watch her. She reaches around to the hand that's at her hip, fingers at her back, and pulls it up to her chest.

"You can touch me anywhere." Brittany breathes out, humming out in approval when Santana's hand covers her breast and squeezes gently. She shuffles forward, her knees come to meet Santana's hips and her chest gets closer to her face.

Santana smiles wickedly up at her before pushing her face into Brittany's chest, kissing the spot right between her boobs while she continues to work her fingers in and out of her. Brittany's body arches into her, forcing her mouth to press more firmly into her skin making them both groan. Her hand is stays at the back of Santana's that is covering her left breast and she manipulates Santana's hand the way she wants to be touched.

"_Ugh_." Santana grunts, her eyes close and her legs open and shut as she desperately tries to control her growing arousal. Brittany taking charge, the sounds coming out of her mouth and the way she feels everywhere makes Santana feel high. She's high on Brittany and it feels better than any pill or drink she's ever had. "You're so hot Britt." She mumbles into her chest, still adorning it with kisses, licks and nips.

The way Santana's lips latch on to her nipple, tongue flicking the hard bud, is what pushes Brittany to the edge. She can feel her release rolling towards her like a freight train and her hips jerk to get Santana's fingers deep inside of her. Santana works double time, thrusting in and out faster and faster until the muscles in her forearm start to burn. There's a hum from Brittany, short sounds turning into long lasting moans and her knees squeeze at Santana's hips every time she moves herself up on those fingers.

"_Oh God_…" Brittany cries as she reaches the beginning of her orgasm. Her hands grip tightly to Santana's body, fingers digging into her flesh as the wave of pleasure takes her over completely. "Oh my God… s_hit_…" She groans and her eyes lock into Santana's as she tumbles further and further into her orgasm. "_Oh_, Santana." She whimpers.

Once she comes, she rests her forehead to Santana's shoulder and slows her hips down. She lets out strangled sighs and airy moans, her hands slide down Santana's back and stop at her hips. Santana turns her head and places a kiss to Brittany's neck and cheek, setting her free hand at Brittany's lower back, pulling her other hand from between her legs when she's sure that her orgasm is complete. She smiles at the sound of Brittany letting out a slight giggle. It's not a serious laugh, it's one that is full of relief and surprise.

With her lips close to Brittany's ear Santana asks if she wants to lay down because she's shaking. Brittany nods, her chin slightly digging into the crook of Santana's neck. She grins and pulls back, looking at Brittany while she moves from straddling her. Brittany lays down with her back to the edge of the bed while Santana shuffles up and leaves her back to the wall. When they are face to face they breathe out smiles, both letting their eyes fall to take in the naked body of the other.

Brittany turns to lay on her stomach, tucking her arms comfortably under her so her fists are just under her chin. Santana grins at the cute way she gets settled into her bed while she herself stays on her side. Santana lifts her hand and runs her fingers down Brittany's back, letting them graze over her rear end and then back up again.

Santana tickles up and down Brittany's back, all the while smiling at the way she's being smiled at. It's quiet, safe for the rain hitting the windows and the rumble of thunder that seems to sound as though it is echoing from miles away. Brittany's fists unclench and she smoothly slips a hand beneath the pillow they are sharing and sets the other to the small space between their bodies.

"I have," Santana interrupts their comfortable silence and reaches over their heads to her nightstand. "I have my iPod on the dock." She flashes the tiny remote in front of them and raises a questioning eyebrow. "Want me to put on some music?" She asks with uncertainty. That day by the lake she didn't have to worry about how to fill the post orgasm silence. Brittany giggles softly, smiles sweetly and nods.

"Okay." Brittany shrugs.

A song they both know comes on and Santana is relieved that she had already set up a playlist. Last thing she wants is for her angry rock mix to come on and spoil the moment. She hums along to the song and Brittany's eyes widen a bit. She'd almost forgotten what a beautiful voice Santana had. Brittany places her hand to Santana's cheek, letting her know she wants her to continue humming along to the soft sound of the song playing in the background. Santana slides her fingers up Brittany's back, arm and settles to the back of the hand covering the side of her face.

When the song comes to an end and new one starts, Santana bashfully looks away and giggles like a little girl. Brittany tells her that one of these days she has to really sing for her, like she used to. Santana rolls her eyes playfully and tells her maybe.

"Come on." Brittany whines and bends her leg, setting it gently between Santana's so that their knees are touching. "You watch me dance all the time."

"You're an amazing dancer." Santana points out.

"Please." She begs. Santana shuffles her face closer to Brittany's and kisses the tip of her nose.

"I said 'maybe', girl." Santana tells her. "And let's be serious. I can't say 'no' to you so 'maybe' really means 'yes'." She reasons and Brittany beams her.

"Do I get to pick the song?" Brittany continues and Santana laughs with a shake of her head. "How about Melissa Etheridge, 'Come To My Window'?"

"That's super gay."

"So's this." Brittany says with a quirked eyebrow and motions between them.

"Good point." Santana smirks and slides her hand down to rest just above Brittany's ass.

They both chuckle as they adjust their bodies to get as close as possible. Santana's hand caresses Brittany's body softly and with purpose. It's as though she's writing her name all over her skin, letting them both know they belong to each other. For a little while Santana watches her fingers dance over Brittany's back, thinking and not thinking, just enjoying the feel of Brittany under her fingertips.

"What's the best movie you've ever seen in theaters?" Santana asks, her eyes scanning over Brittany's face as she waits for the answer.

"Ummm," Brittany hums and looks to the wall for her response. "Kung Fu Panda." Santana laughs, sliding her hand up Brittany's arm, grabs her hand and sets it at her own hip.

"_Really_?" She asks as she shifts in her spot, closer to Brittany. "A cartoon is the best movie you've ever seen in the theater?" Brittany shrugs and chuckles along with her.

"I don't know. You put me on the spot." She nudges Santana's shoulder with her nose. "It was the first one I could think of. Why, what's yours?"

"I don't know, I was just askin'." Santana shrugs, grinning at Brittany who nods.

"Grease 2 was on the other day."

"_Ugh_. Worst movie ever." Santana groans and closes her eyes.

"I love that movie." She defends.

"It's _so_ bad." Santana reminds her and Brittany laughs.

"But, that's why it's good."

"Eh, well, I guess I just think sequels suck." Santana says.

"What? No they don't. Well, not all the time." Brittany reasons. "I mean, I think of this as our sequel." Santana giggles. "Like, the first part of our story was to be continued when we were twelve and five years later is where our story picks up again."

"Is there a third installment to our story?" Santana wonders curiously.

"I don't know." Brittany sighs, clearly thinking. "Maybe." She looks into Santana's eyes. "But, I don't really want _this_ part of the story to end."

"Me neither." Santana admits watching the way her fingers continue to move along Brittany's naked body. She opens her mouth to say something only to fall short on the words she's scared to say. "But," She decides to continue. "If you think about it, having more than one sequel just means there's more story to tell. When one part's over it just means another starts again." She traces patterns on Brittany's skin. "I guess sequels don't suck after all."

"What if the story ends happily ever after? Like fairytales." Brittany challenges.

"I'd like to think that's Disney's version of 'to be continued'. You know, they ride off into the sunset and have a happy life together. I guess it'd be boring to have a follow up of all the silly simple and mundane things that happen after the sun fully sets." Brittany smiles thoughtfully at the way Santana seems to stare off for a moment. "I think I want that." Santana adds after a few seconds of quiet, still looking away from Brittany's gaze. "With you." She clicks her tongue and forces her eyes to meet Brittany's, trying to remain stoic and controlled. Santana shrugs her shoulders that shift against the mattress and pillow beneath her.

She thinks of what she wants to say to Brittany, the words that terrify her. The admission of feelings beyond her control. The only control she has over them is putting them out into the world. So, once again, instead of saying those three words, she opts to remain vague.

"You've changed me." Santana tells her.

They're not exactly the three words she is desperate to hold onto, and technically four words, but they mean every bit as much as the other declaration. Not just to her, but to Brittany as well. Her brow furrows curiously when Brittany smiles out a giggle and shakes her head softly against the pillow.

"No I haven't." Brittany says. "You've always been the person you are right in this moment." She explains and Santana studies her. "You just got a little lost. I may have helped you find your way, but, I haven't changed you. Not in the least." She smirks when she notices the telltale signs of Santana trying to think of a quick reply to counter this and she shushes her with her finger to her lips. "I know this 'cause," She grins and bashfully looks down as she slides her finger from Santana's lips. "You have the same eyes and the same smiles and the same laughs. I mean, they're _way_ sexier now." She widens her eyes and Santana laughs.

Santana leans in and presses her lips to Brittany's leading them into a delicate yet heavy kiss. Their mouths move together and their tongues dance. Hands caress arms, sides, hips and cheeks as they move closer to each other. Santana rolls her body gently onto Brittany's, pressing her shoulder back down to the mattress. She kisses Brittany's jaw, the corner of her mouth and cheek. Her lips brush by her ear and she breathes out heavily, letting her hands roam over the body beneath her.

"I want to make this night last forever." Santana whispers. She can feel Brittany shudder under her touch and she kisses the goose bumps at her neck. "I want you." She sighs, moving her mouth around Brittany's chest. "I want you Brittany." Her voice is barely audible and Brittany whimpers.

Soon hands are at the sides of Santana's face and she's being pulled up to Brittany's eye level. They stare at one another and it feels like an eternity of soul opening secret sharing before Brittany lifts her head from the pillow and crashes her lips to Santana's.

"I'm yours." Brittany mutters out between kisses. Santana slowly kisses her way down Brittany's body.

Brittany's legs bend up and straighten out and bend again while her head lifts and falls to the pillow a few times. She tries to look down and watch Santana between her legs, but, when she catches those dark eyes staring up at her like they are, the pleasure becomes too much to handle. Her hands grip at the sheets and pulls them into her fists until they are a wrinkled ball of fabric between her fingers.

She didn't think she could get this worked up again this fast, but Santana wastes no time in trying to make her feel good. And it does. It feels so very good. The way Santana's tongue licks her up and down and then dips in. That tongue goes in so deep that it feels like Santana is making out with that spot between her legs. When that tongue slips out of her she feels the tip of it play with her clit, poking it and licking it gently and then with pressure.

Santana can't believe how amazing Brittany tastes. She's never wanted to savor every lick the way she wants to do with Brittany. But, it's not just about her taste that is making Santana take her time, it's wanting to bring her girl to a whole other level. There's something about making Brittany come that makes Santana feel closer to her and she wants to be as close to her as humanly possible.

It feels amazing and Brittany wants more. Her body is leading her to do things she never thought of doing, like pressing her hand to the back of Santana's head to pull her face closer. She feels and faintly hears Santana chuckle against her, but she doesn't care. Brittany's eyes clamp shut when she feels Santana's hands sliding up her thighs and to her hip, one setting at her stomach with fingers splayed across her contracting muscles. With one hand still at the back of Santana's head she pulls at her own hair with the other hand. Her hips are jerking up, pressing her center into Santana's mouth, needing more of everything.

Her throat is dry from gasping and it's making her panting and moans sound raspy. She whimpers and whines at the lack of control she is currently having over her body, flooding with an intense and profound amount of feelings both physically and emotionally. Her back arches up from the bed only to fall back down just to arch again. She's close and the hand that settles and grips at her hip tells her that Santana's knows this as well. The hand lost in her own hair quickly clasps against the hand on her hip and fingertips dig into Santana's skin.

When she comes Santana's name leaves her lips in an almost whisper. Her hips push up and stay there as Santana slows her tongue and lips down until she is carefully kissing the inside of Brittany's thighs. After a few moans, grunts and sighs Brittany's hips finally fall back down to the bed. Santana looks up from between her legs and watches the way Brittany's arm moves to cover her eyes and the way her mouth hangs open as she tries to catch her breath.

Santana carefully crawls out from between those long legs and takes her spot next to the wall and chuckles at how exhausted Brittany seems to be. She brushes some blonde hair from her forehead and tucks another few strands behind her ear, letting the back of her fingers linger on her cheek. She just lies there and watches her and Brittany lets her.

"You know, I always thought you were the prettiest girl I'd ever seen." Santana says softly and Brittany's eyes shoot to hers in tired confusion. "I still think that, just so you know." Brittany smiles in a sleepy sort of embarrassed way.

"I love you." Brittany tells her in a quiet voice, lifting her hand to Santana's cheek and reads her eyes. They say the same to her even if her lips don't.

"You're right ya know." Santana rests her head to the pillow and pulls the covers up to their chests. "It is better with feelings."

Maybe it's not what either of them wished Santana had said, but, it was possibly even better. It somehow means a bit more that she can acknowledge that there are mutual feelings here.

Eventually it becomes hard to keep their eyes open even though they try to. Santana was serious before about wanting the night to last forever. So, when she falls asleep, Brittany tries her best to aim for forever. She watches Santana sleep for a few minutes until she can no longer stay awake. As she drifts off to dreamland she smiles because she gets to fall asleep with Santana Lopez in her arms.

* * *

><p>She slowly opens her eyes and it's bright, too bright so she shuts them immediately to prepare her body for the intense light. After blinking a few times she finally falls to focus on something brown. Two brown eyes are staring back at her through long dark eyelashes.<p>

"Hi." Her voice is hoarse, either from not using it for a few hours or, and she blushes, from using it loudly for several the night before. Santana grins, a soft gust of air coming through her nose and her eyes look away briefly.

"Hi." Santana replies in an equally low and raspy voice. "How did you sleep?" She asks, glancing up to the blonde hair splayed out by her arm.

Brittany looks around to take in their surroundings, momentarily forgetting where last night had taken her. They are in Santana's bedroom lying on her twin bed, she can gather this much based on the pale blue grayish colored wall behind the girl in bed with her. She thinks about the question, her body feels rather relaxed and she did sleep well now that she thinks about it.

"Good." She bites her lower lip when she realizes how pretty naked they both are. Santana nods, obviously liking that answer.

"And last night…? Was, good… too?" Santana nervously inquires and again Brittany feels her cheeks burning up.

"Oh… yes… it…" She hates that the only words she can think of is 'good', but the fact that they're both still very naked, had sex… again last night and waking up to each other is a lot to process. So, she swallows, lifts her hand from under the sheet and cups Santana's cheek. "Last night was lovely." She settles on, getting a bashful smirk out of the dark haired girl who looks down to gather herself from acting all giddy.

"It…" Santana glances back up to blue eyes and nods. "It really was." Her voice is like a whisper, she can't even believe what she's saying, but judging from Brittany's smile it's the right and perfect thing to say allowing her to let out a nervous breath. They stare into one another's eyes for a long while, it's really only a few short minutes but, it's as though time stops just for them in that moment. "Do you, uh, are you hungry?" Santana asks quickly, realizing its morning and she has a guest. Brittany's stomach growling gives her away and she moves her hand from Santana's cheek to her stomach completely embarrassed and they both giggle.

"I guess so." Brittany closes her eyes, trying to recover from her stomach answering for her. Santana shifts, sitting up to make some moves.

"Great. I can make you some breakfast then." She beams down to the blonde who grabs her arm to still her.

"Stop, you don't have to make something. Cereal or an apple will be fine." Brittany assures her but Santana scoffs at the idea and continues to roll over the blonde to get off of the bed, placing a soft kiss to Brittany's nose.

"Stay put and breakfast will be ready shortly." Santana tells her and Brittany watches as she pulls a tank top over her head before getting up from bed, finally letting the sheets fall from her half naked body. Brittany keeps her eyes on Santana's perfect ass as she shimmies into a pair of pajama shorts. "Eggs scrambled?" She asks before opening the door, Brittany nods.

Brittany sighs, letting her gaze drift up to the ceiling and closes her eyes hardly able to contain the shy smile that takes over at the fact that she woke up in Santana's bed. Opening her eyes again she searches the room for her clothes even though she can only assume they are still wet from last night.

"There are some clean shorts and shirts in the basket by my desk." She hears Santana call out from the kitchen. So, with the black bed sheet wrapped around her she moves from the bed to the basket to retrieve some fresh clothes. She settles on and old looking school t-shirt and some basketball shorts, tossing her hair up with a hair tie she finds on the night stand.

"I hope you don't mind, but I put cheese in the eggs." Santana says when she hears footsteps behind her. "I loves me some cheese." She grins and sends a quick look over her shoulder. "Hey."

Brittany quickly waves but she's all too well aware of the fact that she's in the Lopez kitchen, after a night of multiple orgasms both given and taken, and that she's wearing Santana's clothes. Her hands come down to the hem of the t-shirt she has on, tugging at it because a shirt that fits Santana perfectly is a bit short for Brittany.

"You look beautiful." Santana says and Brittany finds that very hard to believe. But, it's that little glimmer in Santana's eyes that actually makes her feel beautiful. "You can sit down." She chuckles and motions with the spatula towards the tiny kitchen table. Brittany does as suggested and slowly takes a seat.

"I feel like I should help or something."

"Absolutely not." Santana shakes her head as she sets up to plates with nice portions of eggs. "I can tell you, it's not every day that I make a girl breakfast." She puts the now empty pan down and grabs the toast from the toaster. "Well, of course, if you don't count Aunt Linda." This makes Brittany laugh which makes Santana grin as she carries the plates to the table. "Breakfast is served."

"Thank you." Brittany smiles excitedly at the plate of eggs and grabs her fork. "Mmmm, is it bad to tell you I'm surprised these are actually good?" She asks, mouth full and quirks an eyebrow when she looks to Santana.

"_Wow_." Santana laughs out, covering her mouth that is filled with toast. "If you didn't look absolutely adorable slash super fuckin' sexy in my clothes I'd be very offended." She says and sends Brittany a wink.

Brittany has to look down at her plate because her cheeks are on fire. Of course Santana can see her blushing, they are the only ones in the house and she is sitting only a few feet away from her. She is coaxed to look back up when she feels Santana's foot play with her own, rubbing up from her ankle to her calf then back down again.

"This shirt is a little tight on me… and short." Brittany points out, tugging at the middle of it between her fingers. Santana smirks and arches an eyebrow before she bites her toast.

"I'm okay with that." Santana quickly tells her. "I mean, I prefer what you weren't wearing last night more, but this'll do." Brittany purses her lips, her cheeks sucked in and she tilts her head, unable to look away at the adorableness that is Santana in this moment. "You wanna watch some TV after breakfast?" She asks, taking in a forkful of eggs.

"Sure." Brittany nods doing the same.

"I think Aunt Linda recorded Grease 2." She smirks.

"I thought you hated that movie." Brittany says, bringing her free hand down to Santana's leg and tickles her knee cap with her fingertips.

"But, I like you and you like it. So…"

"So you're willin' to watch a movie you can't stand just for me?" Brittany asks and Santana nods as she slowly chews her food. "What else are ya willin' to do for me?" She wriggles her eyebrows and Santana clears her throat, swallowing her dry toast quickly before it gets stuck through her laughing.

"Anythin' you want babe." She winks again and leans over in Brittany's direction, puckering her lips which are almost instantly kissed by Brittany.

"Hmmm…" Brittany hums as she pulls back, pretending that she's thinking about what she wants to make Santana do. Santana watches her with a small smile on her lips, still leaning towards her and sets her hand on Brittany's thigh. "What time's your aunt comin' home?" She wonders and Santana can read her mind immediately. Her eyes dart to the lock on the microwave and her shoulders fall.

"Any minute." She groans. She hadn't realized how late it was, it's nearly noon and her aunt had said she'd be back from her over night between eleven and half past twelve.

"Oh." Brittany is also deflated at that information, she had a certain something in mind but there is most definitely not enough time for any of that to happen. "Then I guess I'll just have to settle for you bein' my girlfriend." Santana's head jerks back and shakes it, not sure she heard Brittany right. She blinks a few times and opens her mouth to speak but all she can say is Brittany's name. "Santana." Brittany says her name in the same way, her smile never leaving her lips.

Santana breathes out and looks down at her hand on Brittany's thigh. Brittany lets out a long breath and covers the hand on her leg with her own, letting her thumb graze the back of it. Everything was going so well, last night and even this morning, and now she fears she ruined it all by asking for too much. When Santana lifts her eyes up to meet Brittany's, her head tilts to the side and she sighs once again.

"I don't do…"

"Relationships." Brittany finishes her words for her and Santana looks back down and licks her lips. "Right… well…" Brittany leans back in her chair and finishes her breakfast, not letting this little hiccup ruin their wonderful morning.

"Brittany, I'm…" Santana leans closer, moving her chair with her so she can take Brittany's hand in her own. "Last night was…" She grins when Brittany smiles. "And you're…" She bites her bottom lip.

"It's fine. It was just a silly thought that I…. just, nevermind." Brittany assures her with a forced smile, trying to make the situation light again. "Now, let's get to the best worst movie ever made." Santana watches Brittany finish her eggs in one bite and get up from the table.

"Fuck it." Santana mumbles to herself. "Britt!" She calls out just as Brittany reaches the couch. Brittany turns to see Santana practically run at her from the kitchen. "Wait…" She says, holding her hand up to stop the both of them from dismissing that conversation and Brittany just turns her body, a questioning look in her eyes but a small smile on her lips.

"What is…?" She grins when Santana basically barrels into her and wraps her arms tightly around her neck.

"I _do_ want this." Santana says into her ear and her voice is strained, like she's out of breath but to Brittany it sounds a lot like her scared voice. Her arms wrap tighter around Brittany's neck and she pulls her as close as possible. "I want the girlfriend thing." Brittany's smile softens and her arms come to circle around Santana's waist. They stand there, Santana on her tippy toes and Brittany's eyes closed, holding on to one another. "Don't let me go." Santana whispers.

"Never." Brittany tells her, her lips pressed firmly into Santana's hair and she takes in her scent.

"Promise?" Santana asks, slowly pulling back to look her in those clear as a Texas sky blue eyes.

"I promise if you promise." Brittany says.

"Then I promise, too." Santana nods. "I won't let you let me go." She shakes her head and then reaches up to press her lips to Brittany's. "I want to be the girl who's good enough to be with you. And when I'm with you, I feel like I am that girl. I don't want anyone else the way that I want you." Santana says. "And I don't want you to want anyone else. Not the way I want you to want me. 'Cause I do." She tells her. "I want you to want me. I need you to want me." She shakes her head and sniffles. "When you fell in love with me," Santana says with a slight shake of her head. "I was already in love with you." Brittany smiles. "I never expected this."

"What?"

"Love. I never expected it to be like this. It's easy. It's hard. It's… always there." They smile at one another. "I love you." Santana says.

It's random and not at all when she thought the words were going to come out, but it feels so good. It feels like she has had this weight pinning her down to the ground and the simplicity of letting herself fall in love has lifted it.

She can breathe.

Finally.

Brittany stares back at her, a goofy smile on her face and she sucks her lips in trying to contain it. For a moment, a short second, Santana's chest seizes. She's afraid of the silence, regardless of how brief. Brittany shakes her head gently and sighs out a small giggle that sounds like relief. Then, she reaches up and places her hand over Santana's that is on her shoulder and squeezes it.

"I know." Brittany says with a slight shrug.


End file.
